gig English · revision 10659

+ Gig, a light carriage or boat, goes back to Middle English gigge, a spinning top; gig, a performer's engagement, is of uncertain origin.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986)

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /ɡɪɡ/^(Roach et al. 2011)

+

+ {{homograph|1|carriage, boat}}

+

+ {{infobox|confidence=uncertain|attested=1790}}

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is perhaps a transferred use of Middle English gigge, ghyg, a spinning top (in gygmylle, 1463, and whyrlegyg, [[whirligig]], 1440),^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986) with reference to bouncing or whirling motion.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline) The Middle English word also meant a giddy girl (early 13th century) and may be of Scandinavian origin: compare Danish gig, top, and Old Norse geiga, to turn aside (see [[jig]]).^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(MWU 2024) Hoad notes that all these uses may be connected.^(Hoad 1986)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ A small boat on a lightship: 1790; a light two-wheeled carriage, 1791.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ A ship's light boat, reserved for the captain, and a racing rowing boat developed from the boat sense.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023) Obsolete senses of the root word include a whipping top (about 1440) and a flighty girl (before 1225).^(OED 1989) A gig-mill, for raising the nap on cloth, is from the 16th century.^(Hoad 1986)^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * before 1225 – a giddy girl.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1440 – whirligig.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1790 – a small boat.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1791 – a light carriage.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # A light two-wheeled [[carriage]] drawn by one horse.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # A long, light ship's boat, often for the captain's use.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # A light racing rowing boat.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+

+ {{homograph|2|engagement}}

+

+ {{infobox|confidence=unknown|attested=1905}}

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is of uncertain origin.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline) Etymonline suggests a possible link with gigwauk (1899), a word of uncertain meaning apparently for a kind of entertainment or performer.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ A job or show, by 1908 and perhaps by 1900 in circus jargon in Etymonline;^(Etymonline) a single musical engagement, 1926 in jazz slang in Barnhart, said to be used by American jazz musicians as early as 1905.^(Barnhart 1988)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ The verb, to play gigs, is by 1939.^(Etymonline) The transferred sense, any job, is first recorded in 1954,^(Barnhart 1988) and the ''gig economy'' of short-term freelance work is attested from 2009.^(Etymonline) An earlier gig was a combination of numbers in betting games (1847).^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 1905 – jazz use (reported).^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1908 – a job, a show.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1926 – a musical engagement.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1939 – to gig (verb).^(Etymonline)

+ * 1954 – any job.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 2009 – gig economy.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # ''(informal)'' A single booked performance by a musician or comedian.^(AHD)^(Barnhart 1988)

+ # ''(informal)'' A job, especially a temporary one.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ===Verb===

+ # ''(informal)'' To perform at gigs.^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[whirligig]]

+ * [[jig]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ Merriam-Webster and the American Heritage Dictionary also record gig, a pronged fishing spear, short for fishgig (1722), and gig, a military demerit.^(MWU 2024)^(AHD)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}