shag

shag
\ \ [OE] Shag originally meant ‘rough untidy hair’, a sense now more familiar in its derivative shaggy [16]. Related Old Norse forms such as skegg ‘beard’, skagi ‘promontory’, and skaga ‘project’ suggest that its underlying meaning is ‘something that sticks out’. The bird-name shag, which denotes a relative of the cormorant and was first recorded in the 16th century, may be an allusion to the bird’s shaggy crest. The origins of the verb shag ‘copulate with’, which dates from the late 18th century, are not known, although it may be distantly related to shake.

Word origins - 2ed. . 2005.

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  • Shag — (Aussprache: ʃɛk „Schäk“[1]), Shagtabak, Feinschnitttabak, Feinschnitt, Wuzeltabak oder Drehtabak bezeichnet fein geschnittenen, manchmal gesoßten (mit flüssigem Aroma getränkten) Tabak. Aufgrund seines Schnittes brennt er relativ schnell ab und… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Shag — may refer to one of the following:Arts and entertainment* Shag is the name of several different swing dances **Collegiate shag, a swing dance from the 1920s that was popular among college students at the time **Carolina shag, a swing dance that… …   Wikipedia

  • Shag — 〈[ʃæ̣g] m. 6; unz.〉 feingeschnittener Pfeifentabak [<engl. shag „Zottel“] * * * Shag [ʃɛk , engl.: ʃæg], der; s, s [engl. shag, eigtl. = Zottel]: fein geschnittener Pfeifentabak. * * * Shag   [ʃɛk, englisch ʃæg; englisch, eigentlich »Zottel«]… …   Universal-Lexikon

  • shag — shag·a·nap·pi; shag·gi·ly; shag·gi·ness; shag·gy; shag; shag·let; shag·rag; …   English syllables

  • shag — shag1 [shag] n. [ME * shagge < OE sceacga, rough hair, akin to ON skegg, beard < IE base * skek , to spring forth > SHAKE, Ger schicken, to send] 1. Rare heavily matted wool or hair 2. a haircut, short in front and longer in back, with… …   English World dictionary

  • shag — Ⅰ. shag [1] ► NOUN 1) a carpet or rug with a long, rough pile. 2) (before another noun ) (of pile) long and rough. 3) a thick, tangled hairstyle. 4) coarse cut tobacco. ORIGIN Old English. Ⅱ …   English terms dictionary

  • shag´gi|ly — shag|gy «SHAG ee», adjective, gi|er, gi|est. 1. covered with a thick, rough mass of hair or wool, or something resembling them: »a shaggy dog. 2. long, thick, and rough: »shaggy eyebrows, a shaggy mustache. 3. unke …   Useful english dictionary

  • shag|gy — «SHAG ee», adjective, gi|er, gi|est. 1. covered with a thick, rough mass of hair or wool, or something resembling them: »a shaggy dog. 2. long, thick, and rough: »shaggy eyebrows, a shaggy mustache. 3. unke …   Useful english dictionary

  • Shag — Shag, n. [AS. sceacga a bush of hair; akin to Icel. skegg the beard, Sw. sk[ a]gg, Dan. skj?g. Cf. {Schock} of hair.] 1. Coarse hair or nap; rough, woolly hair. [1913 Webster] True Witney broadcloth, with its shag unshorn. Gay. [1913 Webster] 2.… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Shag — Shag, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Shagged}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Shagging}.] To make hairy or shaggy; hence, to make rough. [1913 Webster] Shag the green zone that bounds the boreal skies. J. Barlow. [1913 Webster] [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Shag — Shag, a. Hairy; shaggy. Shak. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

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