▪ I. wig, n.1 Now dial.
(wɪg)
Forms: 4–6 wygge, 5–8 wigg, 6–7 wigge, (8 whigg, 8–9 whig), 7– wig.
[a. MLG., MDu. wigge (Westphalian wigge, Du. wig) wedge, wedge-shaped cake, by-form of MLG. etc. wegge (see wedge n.).]
A kind of bun or small cake made of fine flour.
| 1376 Munim. Gildh. Lond. (Rolls) III. 424 Cum uno pane de obolo, vocato ‘wygge’. 1413 Maldon, Essex, Crt.-rolls Bundle 8 No. 1 (MS.) Ponderatores panis presentant quod..panis wastell pistoris de Writle in defectu xs; item, le wigg ejusdem in defectu, xs. c 1440 Promp. Parv. 526/2 Wygge, brede (P. or bunne brede). 1528 More Dyaloge ii. xi. (1529) 63 b/2 Some wax dronk in lent of wygges & craknels. 1600 Surflet Country Farm v. xx. 710 The workers in pastrie do vse the rising of beere to make their wigs withall. 1620 J. Taylor (Water P.) Jack a Lent C j b, His round halfe-penny loaues are transformd into sq[u]are wiggs, (which wigges like drunkards are drownd in their Ale). 1664 Pepys Diary 8 Apr., Home to the only Lenten supper I have had of wiggs and ale. 1688 Holme Armoury iii. vi. 293/2 A..Wigg is White Bread moulded long ways, and thick in the middle. 1769 Mrs. Raffald Engl. Housekpr. (1778) 285 Toast a light wig. 1810 A. Boswell Edin. 163 Rich Whigs and Cookies smoke upon the board. 1888 Mrs. H. Ward R. Elsmere ii, An exasperating belief in the sufficiency of buttered ‘whigs’ and home-made marmalade for all requirements. |
▪ II. wig, n.2 Sc. and
north. Also 7
wigge, 9
wyg.
[a. ON. veggr wall (cf. rig n.2 = ON. hregg). Cf. wig-louse.] Only in
phr. from wig to wall, backwards and forwards, from pillar to post.
| 1600 W. Watson Decacordon (1602) 239 Tossed from poste to piller, from wigge to wall, by a restles course of miseries. 1768 Ross Helenore ii. 99 Mind what this lass has suffer'd now for you,..How she is catcht for you frae wigg to wa. 1808 Jamieson s.v., A thing is said to gang frae wyg to waw, when it is moved backwards and forwards from the one wall of a house to the other. |
▪ III. wig, n.3 Also 8
wigg.
[Shortened form of periwig, as winkle of periwinkle.] 1. a. An artificial covering of hair for the head, worn to conceal baldness or to cover the inadequacy of the natural hair, as a part of professional, ceremonial, or formerly of fashionable, costume (as still by judges and barristers, formerly also by bishops and other clergymen), or as a disguise (as by actors on the stage):
= periwig 1,
peruke 2. (See also
bag-wig,
bob-wig (
bob n.1 4 b),
full-bottomed wig,
tie-wig.)
| 1675 Char. Town-Gallant 4 He..looks down with Contempt on every body, whose Wig is not right Flaxen. a 1700 B. E. Dict. Cant. Crew, Bar-wig, between a bob and a long one. 1710 Swift City-Shower 42 Triumphant Tories, and desponding Whigs, Forget their feuds, and join to save their wigs. 1716 Gay Trivia iii. 55 Nor is thy Flaxen Wigg with Safety worn. 1782 Cowper John Gilpin 98 Away went Gilpin, neck or nought, Away went hat and wig! 1835 Gladstone in Morley Life (1903) I. 127 The disappearance of the bishops' wigs, which he said had done more harm to the church than anything else! 1845 J. T. Smith Bk. for Rainy Day 93 He was a spare man, and wore a powdered club-wig, similar to that worn by Tom Davies, the book⁓seller and biographer of Garrick. 1853 Dickens Bleak Ho. i, There is the registrar below the Judge, in wig and gown. 1879 Browning Ned Bratts 44 Serjeant Postlethwayte—Dashing the wig oblique as he mopped his oily pate. |
b. Phrases.
dash my wig(s (
colloq.), a mild imprecation (see
dash v.
1 11).
my wig(s! (
colloq.) a meaningless expression of surprise, etc.
wigs on the green, a colloquial expression (
orig. Irish) for coming to blows or sharp altercation (wigs being liable to fall or be pulled off in a fray).
| 1797 M. Robinson Walsingham IV. 75 Dash my wig, if Ainsforth is not as well-looking as your finical Welsh baronet. 1812 Dash my wigs [see dash v.1 11]. 1856 Chamb. Jrnl. 1 Mar. 139/1 If a quarrel is foreseen as a probable contingency, it is predicted that ‘there'll be wigs on the green’. 1871 Hoppe Engl.-Deutsch. Suppl. Lex., Wig, s. my wigs! 1891 Morris in Mackail Life (1899) II. 257, I am writing a short narrative poem. My wig! but it is garrulous. 1903 M. G. Gerard Leaves fr. Diaries i. 22 Whenever they saw them advancing, they felt there would be wigs on the green. |
c. Jocularly applied to a (natural) head of hair,
esp. of a child; hence
curly-wig, a jocular appellation for a child with curly hair.
d. transf.| 1823 Cobbett Rur. Rides (1885) I. 226 Those white, curled clouds, that we call Judges' Wigs. 1843 Tait's Edin. Mag. X. 444 Plunging his nose amidst such an enormous wig of yeast as o'ertopped his cannikin. |
e. Austral. Sheep-shearing. The wool of a sheep growing around the eyes and on top of the head, removed during shearing.
Cf. topknot 1 b.
| a 1964 H. P. Tritton in R. Ward Penguin Bk. Austral. Ballads (1964) 228 Two blows to chip away the wig. 1972 J. S. Gunn in G. W. Turner Good Austral. Eng. iii. 61 One thing I did notice about shearing was..two terms for the one idea..for example rouseabout/shedhand..topknot/wig. |
2. transf. A person who wears a wig (professionally); a dignitary.
colloq. (
Cf. bigwig.)
| 1828 Sporting Mag. (N.S.) XXI. 323 The horrid systematic opposition to hunting, which has justly raised so great odium against the Wigs. 1828 Scott Jrnl. 18 Apr. (1891) 576 Dined with the Dean of Chester..There were the amiable Bishop of London,..Bishop of Llandaff, the Dean of St. Paul's, and other dignitaries... It was a very pleasant day—the wigs against the wits for a guinea in point of conversation. 1858 Carlyle Fredk. Gt. ix. iv. II. 436 So the heirship fell to us, as the biggest wig in the most benighted Chancery would have to grant. |
3. Technical name for the coarse hair on the shoulders of a full-grown male fur-seal, and hence for the seal itself when bearing this.
| 1830 N. Dana Mariner's Sk. 145 (Thornton) These old wigs are more than twice as large as the female seal. 1832 C. M. Goodridge Voy. S. Seas 29 The dog seals are named by South Seamen Wigs. 1883 Q. Rev. Oct. 449 At five years..what is called the ‘wig’—a mass of coarse hair on the shoulders—appears,..so that it does not pay to kill an animal of this age. 1910 Encycl. Brit. XI. 352/2 The largest skins, known in the trade as ‘wigs’, which range up to 8 ft. in length, are uneven and weak in the fur. |
4. [
Cf. wig v.
2 2.] A severe rebuke or scolding, ?
orig. from a ‘bigwig’; an act of
wigging.
slang or
colloq.| 1789 J. Woodforde Diary 1 Feb. (1927) III. 81 Thomas Carr dined with our Folks in Kitchen. Gave him a tolerable good Wigg. 1804 Sir J. Malcolm in Life (1856) I. 267 If you got a private wig about Gwalior, I shall get a dozen. 1813 Moore Twopenny Post Bag ii. 52 Else, though the Pr―e be long in rigging, 'Twould take, at least, a fortnight's wigging—Two wigs to every paragraph—Before he well could get through half. 1852 Doveton Burmese War iii. 76 At the risk of a wig in G. O., or even a court-martial. 1903 Daily Chron. 21 Nov. 3/3 As often as not a ‘wig’ ended by the offer of a cheroot. |
5. attrib. and
Comb., as
wig-box,
wig-dresser,
wig-maker,
wig-making,
wig-puffer,
wig-tie,
wig-wearer,
wig-wearing,
wig-weaver,
wig-weaving;
wig-like adj.;
wig-block, a rounded block for placing a wig upon when being made or not in use;
wig-picker U.S. slang, a psychiatrist;
wig-stand, a support,
usu. of wood or porcelain, comprising a base and rounded stem upon which a wig may rest when not in use (
cf. wig-block);
wig-tail, (
a) a name for a tropic-bird, from its long tail-feathers; (
b) the tail of a wig;
wig-sumach,
-tree, a name for the Venetian sumach (
Rhus Cotinus), from its hairy inflorescence.
| a 1745 Swift Country Life 123 Nim lost his *wig-block, Dan his jordan. 1828 Miss Mitford Village Ser. iii. Country Barber, He..lived alone..with no other companions than his wig-blocks and a tame starling. |
| 1713 Addison Guardian No. 145 ¶4, I take the Liberty of enclosing it to you in my *Wig-Box. 1751 Affecting Narr. H.M.S. Wager 118 These odd Creatures [sc. armadillos] are cased with a covering in Shape somewhat..resembling that of a travelling Wig Box. 1850 Thackeray Pendennis lii[i], Scarce anything told of the lawyer but the wig-box beside the Venus upon the middle shelf of the bookcase. |
| 1828 Miss Mitford Village Ser. iii. Country Barber, Appointed his shaver, *wig-dresser, and wig-maker. |
| 1853 Humphreys Coin-coll. Man. I. xii. 141 Rows of stiff *wiglike curls. |
| 1755 Johnson, Perukemaker,..a *wigmaker. 1828 [see wig-dresser]. |
| 1961 Amer. Speech XXXVI. 147 *Wig picker,..a psychiatrist. 1971 M. McCarthy Birds of Amer. 153 Was I afraid of what a wig-picker might say? |
| 1742 Richardson Pamela (1785) IV. 247 [He] should keep no Company, but that of Tailors, *Wig-puffers, and Milleners. |
| 1883 R. W. Procter Barber's Shop (rev. ed.) xix. 189 Here is the lost one's original epitaph (with the *wig-stand and block to match)..The Barber's Epitaph. 1911 O. Onions Widdershins i. 18 A couple of mushroom-shaped old wooden wig-stands. 1970 Country Life 17–24 Dec. 1245/2 Hand-painted wig stands from Dodo Designs. |
| 1867 Chambers' Encycl. IX. 203/2 Venetian S[umach]..known also as *Wig S[umach] or Wig Tree. |
| 1888 Amer. Natur. Oct. 862 The *wig-tail, a white bird about the size of a pigeon, having two long, flexible, streamer-like tail feathers. 1905 A. T. Sheppard Red Cravat iii. ii. 242 The powdered wig-tail poked out truculently above the red collar. |
| 1878 Browning Poets Croisic cxxxviii, Flounce Of *wig-ties and of coat-tails. |
| 1867 *Wig tree [see wig sumach above]. |
| 1852 S. R. Maitland Eight Ess. 236 The cap was only such an one as *wig-wearers were wont to use. |
| 1784 Cowper Task iv. 543 Her head..Indebted to some smart *wig-weaver's hand For more than half the tresses it sustains. |
| 1828 Miss Mitford Village Ser. iii. Country Barber, His dexterity in *wig-weaving. |
Hence (chiefly
nonce-wds.)
ˈwigdom, judges or lawyers as a body;
ˈwigful, as much as fills a wig;
ˈwiggish a., having the character of a wig (whence
ˈwiggishness);
ˈwiggism, the practice of wearing wigs;
ˈwigless a., destitute of a wig, not wearing a wig;
ˈwiglet, a little wig;
wiglomeˈration [after
conglomeration], humorously for ‘ceremonious fuss’ (in legal proceedings).
| 1886 Illustr. Lond. News 27 Nov. 588/3 ‘*Wigdom’, preparing for its most dignified exhibition on the Bench of the High Court of Justice. |
| 1836 E. Howard R. Reefer vii, I was told to..get a *wigful of potatoes.., the..pedagogue coolly taking off his wig. |
| 1866 Trollope Claverings iii, An effort..to hide the *wiggishness of his wigs. |
| 1821 New Monthly Mag. I. 573 The history of *wiggism in this country..from its origin down to its decline and fall. 1825 Ibid. XIV. 256. |
| 1799 E. Du Bois Piece Fam. Biog. I. 224 Thrusting his *wigless head out of the window. 1813 Colman Br. Grins, Vagaries Vind. xlix, Wigless, with his cassock torn. 1906 Calthrop Engl. Costume III. 133 In the days when to be wigless was to be undressed. |
| 1831 Examiner 660/1 Disarray'd and bare Of cassock, shovel-hat, and *wiglet fair. |
| 1964 Sun-Herald (Brisbane) 21 June 56/3 Wiglets, or half wigs start from 11 gns and full wigs are from 32 gns. 1979 L. Kallen Introducing C. B. Greenfield xi. 131 A stand bearing wigs and wiglets. |
| 1853 Dickens Bleak Ho. viii, He is a ward in Chancery..The whole thing will be vastly ceremonious, wordy, unsatisfactory, and expensive, and I call it, in general, *Wiglomeration. |
▪ IV. wig, v.1 dial. (
wɪg)
Also 6
wygge.
[See wiggle v.] intr. and trans. To move lightly from side to side; to wag, waggle.
| a 1529 Skelton E. Rummyng 137 It wygges and it wagges, Lyke tawny saffron bagges. 1865 Slang Dict. (ed. 3), Wig, move off, go away. 1882 Jamieson's Scott. Dict., Wig, wigg, v. i. To move, shake, wag. Shetl. |
▪ V. wig, v.2 1. [
f. wig n.3 1, or back-formation on
wigged.]
trans. To supply with a wig; to put a wig upon;
spec. to provide with wigs in preparation for a theatrical performance (with the actors or the performance as
obj.).
| 1826 Examiner 119/2 Cooper performed the husband, and had to wig himself into age for the purpose. 1872 E. Yates Castaway i. i, It was Mr. Samuel's boast that he had ‘wigged and painted’ more ‘stars’ than any other man out of London. 1889 Pall Mall Gaz. 3 July 4/2, I..have the pleasure of congratulating Mr. Clarkson on having ‘wigged’ three operas in one evening. |
2. [
f. wig n.3 4, or back-formation on
wigging.] To rebuke or censure severely, scold, rate. Also rarely
intr. with
at.
slang or
colloq.| 1829 Examiner 595/1 The Chronicle discovers too much disposition to what is vulgarly but expressively called, wigging us. 1831 B. Hall Voy. & Trav. I. iii. 73, I had..from the first day I went afloat—a great horror at being reproached, or ‘wigged’, as we called it. 1908 W. de Morgan Somehow Good xxv, What are you wigging at her for? 1911 Times 13 Apr. 9/4 A subordinate..who presumably has been severely ‘wigged’ by his chief. |
3. [
perh. f. prec. or
wig n.3 1.]
intr. With
out. To be overcome by extreme emotion; to be stimulated to the point of imbalance; to go mad, ‘freak out’.
U.S. slang.| 1955 Amer. Speech XXX. 305 He wigged out at the prof's gag. 1968 P. Welles Babyhip xx. 139 ‘The Boss Pornographers,’ he said, ‘it's LSD Music, to wig-out by.’ 1975 Time 27 Oct. 70/3 Some in the startled crowd recall him saying, ‘The company is now in God's hands.’ One executive wondered if Goshorn had ‘wigged out’. 1978 J. Gores Gone, no Forwarding (1979) xi. 69 Kearney was going to wig out when the expense voucher for $100 worth of cocaine came in. |
Hence
wigged-out ppl. a.| 1977 New Yorker 24 Oct. 152/2 The lunacies..just function as part of a normally wigged-out mode of existence. 1980 San Francisco Bay Guardian 16–23 Oct. 21/2 It's a barbed, wigged-out satire on hypocrisy and authoritarian therapy via the problem of alcoholism. |
▪ VI. wig var. whig n.1;
obs. f. Whig n.2;
var. widge dial., beast of burden.