prig

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prig

/pɹɪɡ/

Rhymes with -ɪɡ

Where it comes from

UK 16th century. Of unknown origin. Earlier noun senses ("tinker" and "thief"), as hyponyms of "undesirable person", may have informed later senses ("conceited person").

noun prigs

A deliberately superior person; a person who demonstrates an exaggerated conformity or propriety, especially in an irritatingly arrogant or smug manner. What spruce prig is that?
Similar: goody-goody, prude, puritan
archaic A conceited dandy; a fop. A rap now at the door made all resound, / And in two bouncing blowings did rebound, / With two flash-men, a dandy, and a prig', / With whom they had been running of the rig.
Similar: barbermonger, beau, blade, blood, buck, carpet knight, cockscomb, dandy, dike, dood, dude, dudelet
Ireland, UK, archaic A tinker. These droncken Tynckers, called also Prygges.
Ireland, UK, archaic A petty thief or pickpocket. Out upon him! Prig, for my life, prig! He haunts / wakes, fairs, and bear-baitings.
Similar: abstractor, appropriator, bagger, booster, borrower, cribber, faker, filcher, flogger, heister, larcener, larcenist

verb prigs · prigging · prigged

archaic, slang To filch or steal. to prig a handkerchief
Similar: cozen, mill, purloin, steal, abduct, abstract, appropriate, bag, bandit, bash and grab, bone, boost
To ride.
obsolete To copulate. Wapping thou I know does love, / Else the ruffin cly the mort; / From thy stampers then remove, / Thy drawers, and let's prig in sport.
Similar: sleep with, Formal terms, bed, coit, coitize, dight, enjoy, feague, go in unto, go to bed with, have, know

Translations

Every language

noun a person showing exaggerated conformity

Español	meapilas
Français	bégueule
Deutsch	Tugendbold, Musterknabe
Русский	резонёр rezonjór

noun a petty thief

Русский	воришка voriška

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MLA

"prig." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/prig. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

prig. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/prig

Chicago

"prig." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/prig.

BibTeX

@misc{prig_2026,
  title = {prig},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/prig},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}