stag

play

noun \ ˈstag \

Definition of stag

plural stags

1 or plural stag :an adult male red deer; also :the male of various other deer (especially genus Cervus)

2 chiefly Scotland :a young horse; especially :a young unbroken stallion

3 :a male animal castrated after sexual maturity — compare steer 1

4 :a young adult male domestic chicken or turkey

5 a :a social gathering of men only

b :one who attends a dance or party without a companion

See stag defined for English-language learners

See stag defined for kids

Recent Examples of stag from the Web

The close parallel between the fawn’s becoming a stag and a child’s becoming an adult gives the book its moral overtone.

— kat eschner, Smithsonian, "If You Think ‘Bambi’ Seems Too Mature For Kids, You’re Not Wrong," 15 Aug. 2017
A little brown-and-gray Malaysian stag beetle, which looks creepy in its display case, is transformed by macro photography into a shiny fighting machine, with serrated tips at the end of its long jawbone.

— susan dunne, courant.com, "Meet The Beetles At Peabody Museum In New Haven," 21 June 2017
My son, Cheetah Boy, went to only one prom, stag, and at the last minute.

— marla jo fisher, Orange County Register, "It’s time for prom! Get out the breathalyzers and tear gas," 23 May 2017
In foul territory along the right field line, a huge golden stag stands proudly on the roof of the stadium, the corporate symbol of The Hartford, one of the Yard Goats sponsors.

— hartford courant, courant.com, "Hartford Yard Goats, Dunkin' Donuts Park: Our Observations So Far," 15 May 2017
At 13, Charles shot his first stag, steeling himself to the sight of the beast being eviscerated by servants on the hillside at Balmoral.

— vanityfair.com, "The Lonely Heir: Inside the Isolating Boarding School Days of Prince Charles," 28 Mar. 2017
In the world of a male stag beetle, a good spot on a rotting log is a way to attract females, who like rotting wood to lay their eggs in.

— james gorman, New York Times, "Jaws: The Tale of the Fearsome Stag Beetle," 10 Oct. 2016

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'stag.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of stag

Middle English stagge, from Old English stagga; akin to Old Norse andarsteggi drake

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 12th century

See Words from the same year

Other Hunting and Fishing Terms

chum, covert, creel, flense, pitfall, seine, skulk, spoor, trawl

stag

verb

Definition of stag

stagged; stagging

transitive verb

British

:to spy on

intransitive verb

:to attend a dance or party without a companion

Recent Examples of stag from the Web

Riders staged protests in several cities across France this week, demanding help from the government to improve their working conditions after an influx of new couriers increased the competition for jobs.

— angeline benoit, Bloomberg.com, "French Bike Couriers Give Macron's Economy a One-Star Rating," 30 Aug. 2017
In December, students at Georgetown University staged a sit-in, protesting the school’s licensing agreement with Nike over concerns regarding labor practices.

— sarah larimer, Washington Post, "Georgetown, Nike reach pact on worker conditions," 30 Aug. 2017
In July and August, China’s navy repeatedly staged live-fire exercises across the Yellow Sea from the Korean peninsula, practicing engaging targets above, on, and beneath the surface of the sea, as well as ones on land.

— adam mount, The Atlantic, "How China Sees North Korea," 29 Aug. 2017
The Seattle Mariners staged a version of Shakespeare in the ballpark Sunday afternoon at Yankee Stadium, performing their own comedy of errors in the first inning against the Yankees.

— seth berkman, New York Times, "Seattle’s Five-Error Inning Leads to a Yankees Rout," 27 Aug. 2017
Alabama staged its last practice Saturday before game week in less than 48 hours.

— rainer sabin, AL.com, "Alabama stages last practice before game week," 26 Aug. 2017
Tom Metzger, a former grand wizard in the Klan, staged rallies in the county in the late 1970s and early ‘80s.

— joshua stewart, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Eight hate groups are in San Diego's backyard, civil rights organization says," 22 Aug. 2017
In February 1943, Gandhi staged a 21-day hunger strike that nearly killed him, but remained imprisoned.

— lorraine boissoneault, Smithsonian, "The Speech That Brought India to the Brink of Independence," 8 Aug. 2017
In 2010, critic John Lahr touched on this in a profile of Shepard in The New Yorker, as part of a review of Ages of the Moon, Shepard’s most recent play at the time — his 40th of 42 — which was being staged at the Atlantic Theater in Manhattan.

— sari botton, Longreads, "‘You Wouldn’t Think the Ashes of a Man Would Be So Heavy’: Remembering Sam Shepard," 1 Aug. 2017

Origin and Etymology of stag

stag (informer)

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1796

See Words from the same year

stag

adjective

Definition of stag

1 a :restricted to men

a stag party

b :intended for a male audience; especially :pornographic

stag movies

2 :unaccompanied by someone of the opposite sex

stag women

—

stag

adverb

Examples of stag in a Sentence

a stash of stag flicks that were hidden in the basement

First Known Use of stag

1843

stag Synonyms

Synonyms

bawdy, blue, coarse, crude, dirty, filthy, foul, gross, gutter, impure, indecent, lascivious, lewd, locker-room, nasty, pornographic, porny, profane, raunchy, ribald, smutty, obscene, trashy, unprintable, vulgar, wanton, X-rated

Antonyms

clean, decent, G-rated, nonobscene, wholesome

Near Antonyms

priggish, prim, prudish, puritanical, staid, straitlaced (or straightlaced), Victorian; correct, decorous, genteel, nice, polite, proper, respectable, seemly; innocuous, inoffensive; acceptable, agreeable, desirable, pleasant, pleasing, welcome; appropriate, becoming, fit, meet, suitable; immaculate, perfect, pure, spotless, virginal; approved, endorsed (also indorsed), sanctioned

STAG Defined for English Language Learners

stag

play

noun

Definition of stag for English Language Learners

: an adult male deer

STAG Defined for Kids

stag

play

noun \ ˈstag \

Definition of stag for Students

:an adult male deer

Learn More about stag

See words that rhyme with stag Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for stag Spanish Central: Translation of stag Nglish: Translation of stag for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of stag for Arabic speakers

Seen and Heard

What made you want to look up stag? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

show

stag

Definition of stag

Explore Merriam-Webster

Recent Examples of stag from the Web

Origin and Etymology of stag

Other Hunting and Fishing Terms

stag

Definition of stag

Recent Examples of stag from the Web

Origin and Etymology of stag

stag

Definition of stag

stag

Examples of stag in a Sentence

First Known Use of stag

stag Synonyms

Synonyms

Antonyms

Related Words

Near Antonyms

Phrases Related to STAG

Related Phrases

STAG Defined for English Language Learners

stag

Definition of stag for English Language Learners

STAG Defined for Kids

stag

Definition of stag for Students

Learn More about stag

Seen and Heard

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Words at Play

Ask the Editors

Word Games

Trending: Graham: Health Care Bill Is 'Federalism'

Every Letter Is Silent, Sometimes

'So Long': A Common But Mysterious Goodbye

Challenging Vocabulary Quiz Returns!

Words of the Year: 1066