pigtail en · NOUN
Pronunciation
- /ˈpɪɡ.teɪl/ (UK, US)
- (Southern-England) audio
Etymology
From pig + tail.
Meanings
- (literally) The tail of a pig.
-
Tobacco twisted into a string or roll.
One person […] continued constantly to ply him with the very best pig-tail tobacco, which he had most carefully cut in very small pieces purposely for him.
1828, JT Smith, Nollekens and His Times, Century Hutchinson, published 1986, page 265:
-
A braided plait of hair; queue.
The Big Man came on. His shoulders were naked, his clothes stripped off him by the explosion, Bond supposed, but the black silk tie had remained and it showed round the thick neck and streamed behind the head like a Chinaman's pigtail.
1954, Ian Fleming, “Terror By The Sea”, in Live and Let Die, London: Pan Books, published 1957, page 240:Let padded breasts, high coat collars, stiff stocks, broad-shouldered straps, tight belts, trowser-straps and boots be consigned to the tomb of pigtails and powder.
1861 May 1, “Volunteer Uniforms”, in The New York Times, volume X, number 3000, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 09 Sep 2025, page 4, column 5:Such a filthy spectacle as we presented I have never seen before or since, and it will perhaps give some idea of the almost superhuman dignity of Billali's appearance when I say that, coughing, half-drowned, and covered with mud and green slime as he was, with his beautiful beard coming to a dripping point, like a Chinaman's freshly-oiled pigtail, he still looked venerable and imposing.
1886 October – 1887 January, H[enry] Rider Haggard, “Speculations”, in She: A History of Adventure, London: Longmans, Green, and Co., published 1887, →OCLC, page 123:
-
(especially) A braided plait of hair; queue. ▸ Either of a pair of braids or tails worn on the sides of the head.
[I]t was something that every schoolboy of my generation almost `had' to do, as obligatory a proof of impending manliness as scrumping apples or pulling girls' pigtails.
2000, Bill Oddie, Gripping Yarns, page 12:
- (in-plural) A braided plait of hair; queue. ▸ A hairstyle with a pair of pigtails.
-
(colloquial, in-plural) A braided plait of hair; queue. ▸ A person who wears pigtails.
[…] Chinese, whom he called “pigtails”; or Indians, whom he dismissed as “baboos.”
[2021 October 26, Peter Baker, “The Case Against Winston Churchill”, in The New York Times, →ISSN:
- A short length of twisted electrical wire.
- The flamingo flower (anthurium)
- Twisted stent terminal; stent-end, usually but not necessarily a different fastened part.
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| pigtails | Number=Plur | lexicographic | |
| pig-tail | alternative | lexicographic |
Deriveds
Hypernyms
Synonyms
Translations (71)
cy plethyn (braided plait of hair) · bg тютюн за дъвчене (twisted piece of tobacco) · ko 트윈테일 (braided plait of hair) · arz توكتين (braided plait of hair) · ja ピグテール (twisted electrical wire) · ko 양갈래 머리 (braided plait of hair) · he צַמָּה (braided plait of hair) · ru коси́чка (either of two braids or ponytails) · da fletning (either of two braids or ponytails) · ja 御下げ髪 (braided plait of hair) · cs culík (unbraided) (either of two braids or ponytails) · sv tofs (either of two braids or ponytails) · mk пле́тенка (braided plait of hair) · ru коси́чка (braided plait of hair) · fr tresse (braided plait of hair) · gl cerceta (braided plait of hair) · bg свинска опашка (tail of a pig) · ba толом (either of two braids or ponytails) · bg плитка (braided plait of hair) · de Anschlussdraht (twisted electrical wire) · pt maria-chiquinha (either of two braids or ponytails) · tl tirintas (braided plait of hair) · ja ピグテール (braided plait of hair) · da fletning (braided plait of hair) · ja ツインテール (braided plait of hair) · ko 피그테일 (twisted electrical wire) · pl świński ogon (tail of a pig) · fi siansaparo (tail of a pig) · fr couette (either of two braids or ponytails) · ko 피그테일 (braided plait of hair) · pt trança (braided plait of hair) · da rottehale (either of two braids or ponytails) · fr lulu (either of two braids or ponytails) · mk пле́тенка (either of two braids or ponytails) · mk ко́сичка (either of two braids or ponytails) · es trenza (braided plait of hair) · fi letti (braided plait of hair) · pl kucyk (either of two braids or ponytails) · mk сви́нска о́пашка (tail of a pig) · bg плитка (either of two braids or ponytails) · sv pippilott (either of two braids or ponytails) · rom chunra (braided plait of hair) · es coleta (either of two braids or ponytails) · pl warkocz (braided plait of hair) · fi saparo (either of two braids or ponytails) · de Zopf (braided plait of hair) · es coleta (braided plait of hair) · gl cogoteira (either of two braids or ponytails) · pl kucyk (braided plait of hair) · ja 御下げ (braided plait of hair) · pl mysi ogonek (braided plait of hair) · de Haarzopf (either of two braids or ponytails) · cmn 辮子 /辫子 (braided plait of hair) · sv knorr (tail of a pig) · pl warkoczyk (braided plait of hair) · hu copf (braided plait of hair) · gl cerceta (either of two braids or ponytails) · it codino (braided plait of hair) · sv råttsvans (either of two braids or ponytails) · ru коса́ (braided plait of hair) · de Schweineschwanz (tail of a pig) · fr natte (braided plait of hair) · gl cogoteira (braided plait of hair) · de Anschlussfaser (twisted electrical wire) · ba толом (braided plait of hair) · sv råttsvans (braided plait of hair) · de Zöpfchen (either of two braids or ponytails) · ru хво́стик (braided plait of hair) · tl trintas (braided plait of hair) · izh sapara (tail of a pig) · pt chiquinha (either of two braids or ponytails)