5 PHRASE If you say ' pigs might fly ' after someone has said that something might happen, you are emphasizing that you think it is very unlikely. [HUMOROUS , INFORMAL , EMPHASIS ] □ 'There's a chance he won't get involved in this, of course.'—'And pigs might fly.'
6 PHRASE If you say that someone is making a pig of themselves , you are criticizing them for eating a very large amount at one meal. [INFORMAL , DISAPPROVAL ] □ I'm afraid I made a pig of myself at dinner.
▸ pig out PHRASAL VERB If you say that people are pigging out , you are criticizing them for eating a very large amount at one meal. [INFORMAL , DISAPPROVAL ] □ [V P ] I stopped pigging out on chips and crisps.
pi|geon /p I dʒ I n/ (pigeons )
1 N‑COUNT A pigeon is a bird, usually grey in colour, which has a fat body. Pigeons often live in towns.
2 → see also clay pigeon , homing pigeon
3 to put the cat among the pigeons → see cat
pi geon-hole (pigeon-holes , pigeon-holing , pigeon-holed ) also pigeonhole
1 N‑COUNT A pigeon-hole is one of the sections in a frame on a wall where letters and messages can be left for someone, or one of the sections in a writing desk where you can keep documents.
2 VERB To pigeon-hole someone or something means to decide that they belong to a particular class or category, often without considering all their qualities or characteristics. □ [V n] He felt they had pigeonholed him. □ [be V -ed + as ] I don't want to be pigeonholed as a kids' presenter.
pi geon-toe d ADJ Someone who is pigeon-toed walks with their toes pointing slightly inwards.
pig|gery /p I gəri/ (piggeries ) N‑COUNT A piggery is a farm or building where pigs are kept. [mainly BRIT ]
pig|gy /p I gi/ (piggies )
1 N‑COUNT A piggy is a child's word for a pig or a piglet.
2 ADJ [ADJ n] If someone has piggy eyes, their eyes are small and unattractive.
piggy|back /p I gibæk/ (piggybacks , piggybacking , piggybacked ) also piggy-back
1 N‑COUNT If you give someone a piggyback , you carry them high on your back, supporting them under their knees. □ They give each other piggy-back rides. ● ADV [ADV after v] Piggyback is also an adverb. □ My father carried me up the hill, piggyback.
2 VERB If you piggyback on something that someone else has thought of or done, you use it to your advantage. □ [V + on ] I was just piggybacking on Stokes's idea. □ [V + onto ] They are piggybacking onto developed technology. [Also V ]
pi g|gy bank (piggy banks ) also piggybank N‑COUNT A piggy bank is a small container shaped like a pig, with a narrow hole in the top through which to put coins. Children often use piggy banks to save money.
pi ggy-in-the-mi ddle also pig-in-the-middle
1 N‑UNCOUNT Piggy-in-the-middle or pig-in-the-middle is a game in which two children throw a ball to each other and a child standing between them tries to catch it. [BRIT ]
2 N‑SING If someone is piggy-in-the-middle or pig-in-the-middle , they are unwillingly involved in a dispute between two people or groups. [BRIT ]
pi g-hea ded also pigheaded ADJ If you describe someone as pig-headed , you are critical of them because they refuse to change their mind about things, and you think they are unreasonable. [DISAPPROVAL ] □ She, in her pig-headed way, insists that she is right and that everyone else is wrong. ● pig-headedness N‑UNCOUNT □ I am not sure whether this was courage or pig-headedness.
pig|let /p I glət/ (piglets ) N‑COUNT A piglet is a young pig.
pig|ment /p I gmənt/ (pigments ) N‑VAR A pigment is a substance that gives something a particular colour. [FORMAL ] □ The Romans used natural pigments on their fabrics and walls.
pig|men|ta|tion /p I gmente I ʃ ə n/ N‑UNCOUNT The pigmentation of a person's or animal's skin is its natural colouring. [FORMAL ] □ [+ in/of ] I have a skin disorder, it destroys the pigmentation in my skin.
pig|ment|ed /p I gme nt I d/ ADJ Pigmented skin has a lot of natural colouring. [FORMAL ]
pig|my /p I gmi/ → see pygmy
pig|pen /p I gpen/ (pigpens ) also pig pen N‑COUNT A pigpen is an enclosed place where pigs are kept on a farm. [mainly AM ] in BRIT, use pigsty
pig|skin /p I gsk I n/ N‑UNCOUNT [oft N n] Pigskin is leather made from the skin of a pig.
pig|sty /p I gsta I / (pigsties ) also pig sty
1 N‑COUNT A pigsty is an enclosed place where pigs are kept on a farm. [mainly BRIT ] in AM, usually use pigpen 2 N‑COUNT [usu sing] If you describe a room or a house as a pigsty , you are criticizing the fact that it is very dirty and untidy. [mainly BRIT , INFORMAL , DISAPPROVAL ] □ The office is a pigsty.
pig|swill /p I gsw I l/
1 N‑UNCOUNT Pigswill is waste food that is fed to pigs.
2 N‑UNCOUNT If you describe food as pigswill , you are criticizing it because it is of very poor quality. [INFORMAL , DISAPPROVAL ]
pig|tail /p I gte I l/ (pigtails ) N‑COUNT If someone has a pigtail or pigtails , their hair is plaited or braided into one or two lengths. □ …a little girl with pigtails.
pike /pa I k/ (pikes ) The form pike is often used as the plural for meaning 1 . 1 N‑VAR A pike is a large fish that lives in rivers and lakes and eats other fish. ● N‑UNCOUNT Pike is this fish eaten as food.