plural hogs also hog
1
a
: a domesticated swine especially when weighing more than 120 pounds (54 kilograms) compare pig sense 1a
b
: any of various animals related to the domesticated swine
2
usually hogg British
: a young unshorn sheep
also
: wool from such a sheep
3
a
: a selfish, gluttonous, or filthy person
b
: one that uses something to excess
old cars that are gas hogs
hogged; hogging
1
: to cut (a horse's mane) short : roach
2
: to cause to arch
3
: to take in excess of one's due
hog the credit
4
: to tear up or shred (some material, such as waste wood) into bits by machine
: to become curved upward in the middle
—used of a ship's bottom or keel
Synonyms
Examples of hog in a Sentence
Noun
Don't be such a hog! Other people have to eat too!
The new software is a real memory hog.
Verb
He's been hogging the remote control all night.
Recent Examples on the Web
Charlotte Phillipp, Peoplemag, 8 Apr. 2024
The family lived four to a room in a mobile home with an aunt, and her father worked nights on a hog farm.
—Simon Montlake, The Christian Science Monitor, 28 Mar. 2024
For most of us, an entry-level or mid-level one will be more than enough to satisfy both the novelty of thermal shooting and the necessity of it, most likely in terms of population control for hogs and other such animals.
—Amanda Oliver, Field & Stream, 21 Mar. 2024
For instance, one of the largest energy hogs of any particle accelerator is its RF system, necessary for actually accelerating particles.
—IEEE Spectrum, 17 Feb. 2024
Well, Gmail isn’t the only storage hog in the Google Suite.
—Boone Ashworth Lauren Goode, WIRED, 17 Mar. 2024
Salvation, or at least the illusion of it, came with the release of a hog that was unlike anything from the brand’s 116-year history: the 2020 Harley-Davidson LiveWire was powered entirely by a 15.5 kWh lithium-ion battery.
—Peter Jackson, Robb Report, 1 Mar. 2024
Pig butchering — a scam named after the practice of farmers fattening hogs before slaughter — often starts with what appears to be a wrong-number text message.
—Zeke Faux, Fortune, 29 Feb. 2024
Following the City Council’s vote on March 12, staff will be exploring options to allow the top portion of the fence to be made of other materials that would still allow for the 90 percent view, such as metal rails or hog wire, a fence style where wires cross through frames.
—Lauren J. Mapp, San Diego Union-Tribune, 20 Mar. 2024
Anita Chabria, Los Angeles Times, 6 Mar. 2024
The IndyCar veteran, who’s now in an Indy 500-only driver role along with his ownership stake, still remembers fondly the pair’s early days at Team Penske, where Castroneves joked de Ferran hogged more than 90 minutes of the 1 hour, 45-minute sit-down.
—The Indianapolis Star, 10 Jan. 2024
Colorado’s new coach, Deion Sanders, hogged the early headlines.
—Paul Newberry, USA TODAY, 5 Jan. 2024
The jar blender and food processor are the big guys who hog the spotlight.
—Becky Krystal, Charlotte Observer, 31 Jan. 2024
But as screens hog more interior real estate, their price can be a challenge for manufacturers, including for mainstream models that aspire to luxury-level features and tech.
—IEEE Spectrum, 17 Dec. 2023
But why allow events like the Maui Invitational, Las Vegas Invitational, Diamond Head Classic in Honolulu and Wooden Legacy in Fullerton to hog all the headlines?
—Kirk Kenney, San Diego Union-Tribune, 21 Nov. 2023
Goldston likes the vertical design, which won’t hog floor space, and separate storage for wrapping accouterments.
—Korin Miller, wsj.com, 16 Nov. 2023
The Ivy League has hogged the spotlight in this matter: From an assault on an Israeli student at Columbia to the justification of terrorism by dozens of Harvard student groups, the list of pro-Hamas displays within the ivory tower is long.
—Kayla Bartsch, National Review, 19 Oct. 2023
Noun
In the video, the officer — identified by FOX 8 as Cory Cooper — could be seen from a car window chasing after a hog through a front yard before tackling it.
—Charlotte Phillipp, Peoplemag, 8 Apr. 2024
The family lived four to a room in a mobile home with an aunt, and her father worked nights on a hog farm.
—Simon Montlake, The Christian Science Monitor, 28 Mar. 2024
For most of us, an entry-level or mid-level one will be more than enough to satisfy both the novelty of thermal shooting and the necessity of it, most likely in terms of population control for hogs and other such animals.
—Amanda Oliver, Field & Stream, 21 Mar. 2024
For instance, one of the largest energy hogs of any particle accelerator is its RF system, necessary for actually accelerating particles.
—IEEE Spectrum, 17 Feb. 2024
Well, Gmail isn’t the only storage hog in the Google Suite.
—Boone Ashworth Lauren Goode, WIRED, 17 Mar. 2024
Salvation, or at least the illusion of it, came with the release of a hog that was unlike anything from the brand’s 116-year history: the 2020 Harley-Davidson LiveWire was powered entirely by a 15.5 kWh lithium-ion battery.
—Peter Jackson, Robb Report, 1 Mar. 2024
Pig butchering — a scam named after the practice of farmers fattening hogs before slaughter — often starts with what appears to be a wrong-number text message.
—Zeke Faux, Fortune, 29 Feb. 2024
Following the City Council’s vote on March 12, staff will be exploring options to allow the top portion of the fence to be made of other materials that would still allow for the 90 percent view, such as metal rails or hog wire, a fence style where wires cross through frames.
—Lauren J. Mapp, San Diego Union-Tribune, 20 Mar. 2024
Verb
Newsom and DeSantis hogged the spotlight, but didn’t move the needle.
—Anita Chabria, Los Angeles Times, 6 Mar. 2024
The IndyCar veteran, who’s now in an Indy 500-only driver role along with his ownership stake, still remembers fondly the pair’s early days at Team Penske, where Castroneves joked de Ferran hogged more than 90 minutes of the 1 hour, 45-minute sit-down.
—The Indianapolis Star, 10 Jan. 2024
Colorado’s new coach, Deion Sanders, hogged the early headlines.
—Paul Newberry, USA TODAY, 5 Jan. 2024
The jar blender and food processor are the big guys who hog the spotlight.
—Becky Krystal, Charlotte Observer, 31 Jan. 2024
But as screens hog more interior real estate, their price can be a challenge for manufacturers, including for mainstream models that aspire to luxury-level features and tech.
—IEEE Spectrum, 17 Dec. 2023
But why allow events like the Maui Invitational, Las Vegas Invitational, Diamond Head Classic in Honolulu and Wooden Legacy in Fullerton to hog all the headlines?
—Kirk Kenney, San Diego Union-Tribune, 21 Nov. 2023
Goldston likes the vertical design, which won’t hog floor space, and separate storage for wrapping accouterments.
—Korin Miller, wsj.com, 16 Nov. 2023
The Ivy League has hogged the spotlight in this matter: From an assault on an Israeli student at Columbia to the justification of terrorism by dozens of Harvard student groups, the list of pro-Hamas displays within the ivory tower is long.
—Kayla Bartsch, National Review, 19 Oct. 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'hog.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Hog.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hog. Accessed 24 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
hog
1 of 2 noun
ˈhȯg 
ˈhäg
plural hogs also hog
1
a
: a domesticated swine especially when weighing more than 120 pounds (54 kilograms) compare pig sense 1a
b
: any of various animals related to the domesticated swine
2
: a selfish, greedy, or filthy person
hoggish
adjective
ˈhȯg-ish
ˈhäg-
hoggishly
adverb
hoggishness
noun
hog
2 of 2 verb
hogged; hogging
: to take more than one's share
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