shag
1[shag]
noun
verb (used with or without object), shagged, shag·ging.
to make or become rough or shaggy.
Origin of shag
1before 1050; Old English sceacga (wooly) hair (not recorded in ME); cognate with Old Norse skegg beard; akin to shaw
shag
2[shag]
noun
Origin of shag
21560–70; perhaps special use of shag1, applied first to bird's crest
shag
3[shag]
verb (used without object), shagged, shag·ging.
noun
Origin of shag
3First recorded in 1350–1400; perhaps variant of shog
shag
4[shag]
verb (used with object), shagged, shag·ging.
Origin of shag
41930–35; origin uncertain; see shack2
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Related Words for shag
only, unattended, tapestry, carpeting, mat, cigarette, crop, smoking, fly, shoot, rush, travel, dash, race, jog, sprint, falter, pull, lag, chaseExamples from the Web for shag
Historical Examples of shag
They love Carlo and Shag, and are never afraid when they are with them.
Bird Stories and Dog StoriesAnonymous
They ordered horses an' a outfit, and Shag Bunce is goin' with 'em.
The Man of the DesertGrace Livingston Hill
No pony of his outfit, be he ever so fleet, could get far ahead of Shag Bunce.
The Man of the DesertGrace Livingston Hill
She is the keeper's daughter, you know, and often goes out with Shag and me.
MoragJanet Milne Rae
She looked up with such kind beautiful eyes when Shag and I passed.
MoragJanet Milne Rae
shag
1noun
verb shags, shagging or shagged
Word Origin for shag
Old English sceacga; related to sceaga shaw 1, Old Norse skegg beard, skagi tip, skōgr forest
shag
2noun
Word Origin for shag
C16: special use of shag 1, with reference to its crest
shag
3verb shags, shagging or shagged
noun
Word Origin for shag
C20: of unknown origin
usage
Though still likely to cause offence to many older or more conservative people, this word has lost a lot of its shock value of late. It seems to have a jocular, relaxed connotation, which most of the other words in this field do not. No doubt its acceptability has been accelerated by its use in the title of an Austin Powers film. Interestingly, though advertisements for the film caused a large number of complaints to the British Advertising Standards Authority, they were not upheld
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
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