English
Etymology
From Middle English pegge , from Middle Dutch pegge ( “ pin, peg ” ) , from Old Saxon *pigg- , *pegg- , from Proto-Germanic *pig- , *pag- ( “ peg, stake ” ) , from Proto-Indo-European *bak- , *baḱ- ( “ club, pointed stick, peg ” ) . Cognate with (deprecated template usage ) [etyl] Dutch dialectal peg ( “ pin ” ) , Low German pig , pigge ( “ peg, stick with a point ” ) , Low German pegel ( “ post, stake ” ) , Swedish pigg ( “ tooth, spike ” ) , Irish bac ( “ stick, crook ” ) , Latin baculum ( “ staff ” ) , Latvian bakstît ( “ to poke ” ) , Ancient Greek βάκτρον ( báktron , “ staff, walking stick ” ) . Related to beak .
This is one of the very few English words that begin with a p and come from Proto-Germanic. Proto-Germanic *p , when not in a consonant cluster beginning with *s , developed by Grimm's law from the Proto-Indo-European consonant *b , which was very rare.
Pronunciation
Noun
peg (plural pegs )
A cylindrical wooden or metal object used to fasten or as a bearing between objects.
Measurement between the pegs : after killing an animal hunters used the distance between a peg near the animal's nose and one near the end of its body to measure its body length.
A protrusion used to hang things on.
Hang your coat on the peg and come in.
( figurative ) A support; a reason; a pretext.
a peg to hang a claim upon
( cribbage ) A peg moved on a crib board to keep score.
( finance ) A fixed exchange rate , where a currency 's value is matched to the value of another currency or measure such as gold
( UK ) A small quantity of a strong alcoholic beverage.
Harper's Magazine
This over, the club will be visited for a "peg ," Anglice drink.
1953 , S. S. Field, The American drink book , page 65 :The name had come to mean any aromatic essence of herbs by the time the first thirsty colonial poured a peg of Who-shot-John into his mint water.
A place formally allotted for fishing
( colloquial , dated ) A leg or foot.
1913 , D.H. Lawrence, Sons and Lovers , chapter 2
"Now I'm cleaned up for thee: tha's no 'casions ter stir a peg all day, but sit and read thy books."
One of the pins of a musical instrument , on which the strings are strained .
William Shakespeare : Othello , Act 2, Scene I :
O, you are well tuned now!
But I'll set down the pegs that make this music,
As honest as I am.
1826, Mary Shelley, The Last Man , part 1, chapter 4
Did we form ourselves, choosing, and our powers? I find myself, for one, as a stringed instrument with chords and stops - but I have no power to turn the pegs , or pitch my thoughts to a higher or lower key.
A step; a degree.
Barrow
to screw papal authority to the highest peg
Hudibras
We still have worsted all your holy tricks; / Trepann'd your party with intrigue, / And took your grandees down a peg [ …]
Short for clothes peg .
Synonyms
( small quantity of strong liquor ) : shot
terms related to peg (noun)
Translations
a protrusion used to hang things on
Armenian: please add this translation if you can
Basque: please add this translation if you can
Chinese:
Mandarin: 衣夾 / 衣夹 (zh) ( yījiā ) , 衣夹 (zh) ( yījiā, yījiá )
Esperanto: please add this translation if you can
Finnish: naula (fi) ( esp. for clothes ) , tappi (fi)
French: porte-manteau (fr) m , patère (fr) f
Galician: chavella f , galla f , bío m , caravilla f , tranqueiro m , aldrabilla f
Georgian: please add this translation if you can
German: Wäscheklammer (de) f
Greek:
Ancient: πάσσαλος m ( pássalos )
(deprecated template usage ) {{trans-mid }}
Icelandic: snagi m
Italian: attaccapanni (it) m
Japanese: 掛け釘 ( かけくぎ, kakekugi ) , ペッグ ( peggu ) , ペグ ( pegu )
Khmer: please add this translation if you can
Maori: titi
Mongolian: please add this translation if you can
Russian: крючо́к (ru) m ( krjučók ) , ве́шалка (ru) f ( véšalka )
Spanish: colgador , perchero (es)
Swedish: tapp (sv) , knarv
Thai: please add this translation if you can
Turkish: mandal (tr)
Vietnamese: please add this translation if you can
Translations to be checked
Verb
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To fasten using a peg .
Let's peg the rug to the floor.
To affix or pin .
I found a tack and pegged your picture to the bulletin board.
She lunged forward and pegged him to the wall.
To fix a value or price.
China's currency is no longer pegged to the American dollar.
To narrow the cuff openings of a pair of pants so that the legs take on a peg shape.
To throw .
To indicate or ascribe an attribute to. (Assumed to originate from the use of pegs or pins as markers on a bulletin board or a list.)
He's been pegged as a suspect.
I pegged his weight at 165.
( cribbage ) To move one's pegs to indicate points scored; to score with a peg.
She pegged twelve points.
( slang ) To reach or exceed the maximum value on a scale or gauge.
We pegged the speedometer across the flats.
( slang , typically in heterosexual contexts) To engage in anal sex by penetrating one's male partner with a dildo .
2007 , Violet Blue , The Adventurous Couple's Guide to Strap-On Sex [1] , →ISBN , page 32 :When you're pegging him and he gets close to orgasm, you'll observe a number of physical signs [ …]
Translations
To narrow the cuff openings of a pair of pants
To indicate or ascribe an attribute to
(cribbage) To move one's pegs to indicate points scored
(slang) To reach or exceed the maximum value on a scale or gauge
(slang, typically in heterosexual contexts) To engage in anal sex by penetrating one's male partner with a dildo
See also
Anagrams
Danish
Pronunciation
Verb
peg
(deprecated template usage ) imperative of pege
Middle English
Noun
peg
peg