2

I googled male pig word and got results that said the word was boar. I thought, "That's odd; I thought that was the word for a wild pig!" So I visited Dictionary.com and sure enough, it has both meanings:

boar [bawr, bohr]
noun
1. the uncastrated male swine.
2. wild boar.
adjective
3. South Midland and Southern U.S. (of animals) male, especially full-grown: a boar cat.

So I was wondering, since there exists a term that only means female pig--sow, does such a word exist that only means male pig and nothing else? I'm looking for a unique term.

Improve this question
7
  • 1
    There is hardly any word at all that means only one thing....
    – Hellion
    Commented Mar 23, 2014 at 3:31
  • @Hellion Considering that there are numerous distinct words for cattle, it's a pretty reasonable question.
    – David Pope
    Commented Mar 23, 2014 at 3:37
  • 4
    Boar is a perfectly acceptable term for a male domestic swine. That's why wild boar is always termed wild. Otherwise, it would just say boar.
    – David M
    Commented Mar 23, 2014 at 3:39
  • 3
    Fun fact: a sow can also be a female of several other land mammal species, including bears and badgers.
    – user2310967less
    Commented Mar 23, 2014 at 8:29
  • 1
    Are there also "wild sows"? There must be; I assume not all wild boars are escapees from captivity.
    – GEdgar
    Commented Mar 23, 2014 at 13:19

3 Answers 3

Reset to default
6

There are three terms used for this purpose. Here's a description of all three from Wikipedia.

  1. Boar or hog, male pig of breeding age.
  2. Barrow, male pig castrated before puberty.
  3. Stag, male pig castrated later in life (an older boar after castration).
Improve this answer
3
  • So there's no term that can't be confused with wild boar? That's disappointing!
    – Brian J. Fink
    Commented Mar 23, 2014 at 3:42
  • 3
    @BrianJ.Fink Context matters. And in most case it's context that clears up the confusion.
    – Noah
    Commented Mar 23, 2014 at 4:03
  • A note on "stag", since it's not the common usage of the word: When used in this context, it means any animal that was castrated after reaching sexual maturity, or cattle or sheep castrated before sexual maturity.
    – Izkata
    Commented Mar 23, 2014 at 4:41
3

If the species is called "hog" (AmE), the name for a full grown male hog is "boar", and "pig" for a young, weaned hog or any immature hog, and a "piglet" for a little pig, especially a suckling one.

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pig

If the species is called "pig" (chiefly BE) or "swine", the name for a mature male pig is "hog", "shoat/shote" for a young, weaned pig or any immature pig, and "piglet" for a young, unweaned pig.

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/shoat

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/piglet

Improve this answer
4
  • 1
    Not to be confused with hogg, hug or ugg which colloquially means sheep in parts of Scotland and Cornwall.
    – cup
    Commented Mar 23, 2014 at 10:00
  • 1
    Your answer gives several specialized names unique to various stages of development. Perhaps I should clarify that I seek a unique term for the adult male pig, and it pains me that its name is so easily confused with a wild swine, regardless of gender.
    – Brian J. Fink
    Commented Mar 23, 2014 at 19:43
  • @BrianJ.Fink The thing is a wild boar can also be referred to as a wild hog or a wild pig m.myfwc.com/wildlifehabitats/profiles/mammals/land/wild-hog
    – Elian
    Commented Mar 23, 2014 at 20:08
  • I only care about the ambiguity of the word boar.
    – Brian J. Fink
    Commented Mar 24, 2014 at 0:50
0

It seems that the question is much more difficult than it may at first appear, as there are multiple names for male, female and even hermaphrodite pigs. These names take into account, among other things, age, weight, sexual maturity, “sexual degrees” (such as whether the males have been castrated, when there is only one testicle “showing,” or for hermaphroditic ones). For a good account of these multiple swine names and their meanings, see Rare Breed Pig Keeping, p. 54 (available online at http://www.gospbc.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/RareBreedPigKeeping.pdf

Therefore there does not seem to be a single name for either a female or male pig, but several to choose from based on a wide variety of differences.

Improve this answer

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge you have read our privacy policy.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.