stag

• steg (dialectal), staig (Scotland), stagg, stagge (obsolete)

From Middle English steg, stagge, from Old English stagga, stacga (“a stag”) and Old Norse steggi, steggr (“a male animal”), both from Proto-Germanic *staggijô, *staggijaz (“male, male deer, porcupine”), probably from Proto-Indo-European *stegʰ-, *stengʰ- (“to sting; rod, blade; sharp, stiff”). Cognate with Icelandic steggi, steggur (“tomcat, male fox”). Related to staggard, staggon.

• IPA^(key): /stæɡ/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -æɡ

stag (countable and uncountable, plural stags)

A stag deer of species Cervus nippon. (2)

1. (countable) An adult male deer.
2. (countable) A colt, or filly.
3. (by extension, countable, obsolete) A romping girl; a tomboy.
4. (countable) An improperly or late castrated bull or ram – also called a bull seg (see note under ox).
5. (countable, finance) An outside irregular dealer in stocks, who is not a member of the exchange.
6. (countable, finance) One who applies for the allotment of shares in new projects, with a view to sell immediately at a premium, and not to hold the stock.
7. (countable) The Eurasian wren, Troglodytes troglodytes.
8. (countable, usually attributive) An unmarried male, a bachelor; a male not accompanying a female at a social event.

   a stag dance; a stag party

9. (countable) A social event for males held in honor of a groom on the eve of his wedding, attended by male friends of the groom, sometimes a fund-raiser.

   The stag will be held in the hotel's ballroom.

10. (countable) A stag beetle (family Lucanidae).
    • 2007, Eric R. Eaton, ‎Kenn Kaufman, Kaufman Field Guide to Insects of North America (page 132)

      Members of the genus Pasimachus […] can be confused with stag beetles […] but stags have elbowed antennae.

11. (uncountable, Britain, military, slang) Guard duty.
    • 2000, Richard Tomlinson, The big breach: from top secret to maximum security (page 31)

      Between shifts on stag or manning the radio, we grabbed a few hours sleep.

    • 2012, Max Benitz, Six Months Without Sundays: The Scots Guards in Afghanistan

      Three days were spent on standby or patrols and a fourth day on guard, with at least eight hours on stag.

• (social event): bachelor party (US), stag do (UK informal), stag party, stag lunch

• bull

stag (third-person singular simple present stags, present participle stagging, simple past and past participle stagged)

1. (intransitive, Britain) To act as a "stag", an irregular dealer in stocks.
2. (transitive) To watch; to dog, or keep track of.

stag (not comparable)

1. Of a man, attending a formal social function without a date.

   My brother went stag to prom because he couldn't find a date.

• bachelorette party, hen party

• ATGs, GATS, TAGs, gast, gats, tags

stag ?

1. (nautical) A stay.
2. An appliance with a function similar to a nautical stay.