gig

• enPR: gĭg, IPA^(key): /ɡɪɡ/
• Rhymes: -ɪɡ

From Middle English gige (“fiddle”) and Middle English *gygge (found in Middle English whyrlegygge (“a top, whirligig, a rotating device”)), akin to Old Norse gígja (“fiddle”) and German Geige (“violin”).

gig (plural gigs)

1. (informal, music) A performing engagement by a musical group; or, generally, any job or role, especially for a musician or performer.

   I caught one of the Rolling Stones' first gigs in Richmond.

   Hey, when are we gonna get that hotel gig again?

   • 2015, RZ Aklat, Become a Freelance Translator

     Whether you want to have some occasional translation gigs or turn freelance translating into your fulltime occupation, you'll need to know some essential things […]

2. (informal, by extension) Any job; especially one that is temporary; or alternately, one that is very desirable.

   I had this gig as a file clerk but it wasn't my style so I left.

   Hey, that guy's got a great gig over at the bike shop. He hardly works all day

   • 1868, The Family Herald

     Years ago the cravers for sensation were delighted with the real gig and horse with the aid of which Mr. Thurtell murdered Mr. Weare.

   • 1967, William Styron, The Confessions of Nat Turner, Vintage 2004, page 77:

     the room grew stifling warm and vapor clung to the windowpanes, blurring the throng of people still milling outside the courthouse, a row of tethered gigs and buggies, distant pine trees in a scrawny, ragged grove.

3. A forked spear for catching fish, frogs, or other small animals.
4. (historical) A two-wheeled horse-drawn carriage.
5. (Southern England) A six-oared sea rowing boat commonly found in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly.
   • 1979, Stan Rogers, The Flowers of Bermuda:

     The captain's gig still lies before ye whole and sound, / It shall carry all o' we.

6. (US, military) A demerit received for some infraction of military dress or deportment codes.

   I received gigs for having buttons undone.

(fishing spear): leister

gig (third-person singular simple present gigs, present participle gigging, simple past and past participle gigged)

1. To fish or catch with a gig, or fish spear.
   • 2011, John Jeremiah Sullivan, Pulphead,

     The chimps do a sort of frog-gigging number on them and pull them out like fondue.

2. To engage in musical performances.

   The Stones were gigging around Richmond at the time

3. To make fun of; to make a joke at someone's expense, often condescending.

   His older cousin was just gigging him about being in love with that girl from school.

4. (US, military) To impose a demerit for an infraction of a dress or deportment code.

   His sergeant gigged him for an unmade bunk.

• gigster

Clipping of giga- units

gig (plural gig or gigs)

1. (colloquial, computing) A gigabyte.

   This picture is almost a gig; don't you wanna resize it?

   How much music does it hold? A hundred and twenty gigs.

   (computing) - My new computer has over 500 gigs of hard drive space.

2. (slang) Any unit having the SI prefix giga-

From Middle English gigge, from Old French gigues (“a gay, lively girl”), from Old Norse gikkr (“a pert person”), related to Danish gjæk (“a fool; jester”), Swedish gäck (“a fool; jester; wag”). More at geck.

gig (plural gigs)

1. A playful or wanton girl; a giglot.

• fizgig
• giglot

Probably from Latin gignere (“to beget”).

gig (third-person singular simple present gigs, present participle gigging, simple past and past participle gigged)

1. To engender.

   (Can we find and add a quotation of Dryden to this entry?)

• IgG, igg

gig

1. Soft mutation of cig (“meat”).