tantony pig en · NOUN
Etymology
Contraction of Saint Anthony's pig in honour of St Anthony, patron saint of swineherds, frequently shown with a little pig by his side. For the phonetic evolution, compare tawdry.
Meanings
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(obsolete, slang) The favourite or smallest pig in the litter.
And to follow the delicious breeze like a tantony pig .
1935, Wystan Hugh Auden, O What Is That Sound Which So Thrills The Ear:2002, Murray J Levith, Shakespeare's Merchant and Marlowe's Other Play in The Merchant of Venice: Critical Essays, ed John Mahon, Ellen MacLeod Mahon A “Tantony pig” is the smallest of a litter, a detail that might recall Antonio's description of himself in Shakespeare's play as the “tainted wether of the flock".
This system (which had the disadvantage of discouraging good farming, since the worst animal — the 'Tantony pig' — counted for as much as the best) was only applicable when the court was in constant progress.
1984, Richard Fitzneale, Dialogus De Scaccario: The Course of the Exchequer and Constitutio Domus Regis (the Establishment of the Royal Household):I'm not going to tankety-tankety after his tail, like a Tantony pig any more.
1838, Benjamin Webster, Acting National Drama:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| tantony pigs | Number=Plur | lexicographic |