sea-pig

sea-pig

A sea-pig swims gracefully through the ocean.

Definition
  1. Noun:
    • A marine mammal: "sea-pig" is an informal or dialectal term for certain marine mammals, specifically the porpoise or dolphin (from the reference definition: "cá heo" or "cá nược" in Vietnamese, which refer to dolphins and dugongs respectively). It can also refer to the dugong or manatee, large herbivorous marine mammals.
    • Historical/Regional use: In some older or regional English, "sea-pig" may refer to a guinea pig kept at sea, or a porpoise (often called a "sea hog" due to its pig-like snout).
Usage Examples
  • Noun:
    • The sailors spotted a sea-pig swimming alongside the ship. (A porpoise or dolphin.)
    • In some coastal villages, children call the playful dolphins "sea-pigs." (A local name for dolphins.)
    • The dugong, or sea-pig, grazes on seagrass in shallow waters. (A dugong or manatee.)
Advanced Usage

  • "to be a sea-pig": (informal) to be a person who resembles a pig-like marine creature, or to be clumsy in the water (rare, metaphorical).

    • He floundered in the waves like a sea-pig. (He moved awkwardly in the water.)

  • "sea-pig" in literature: The term appears in older texts, such as in the works of Herman Melville, where it refers to the porpoise.

    • "The sea-pig rolled heavily in the wake of the whaler." (A porpoise swimming near the ship.)
Variants and Related Words
  • Sea pig (two words): the same creature, often written as two separate words.
    • The sea pig is a common sight in the North Atlantic. (A porpoise.)
  • Porpoise (n): a specific marine mammal, a small toothed whale, often called a "sea pig" in older English.
  • Dugong (n): a large marine mammal, sometimes called a "sea pig" due to its pig-like face.
  • Guinea pig (n): a small rodent, not a marine animal, but sometimes called a "sea-pig" historically by sailors.
Synonyms
  • Porpoise: a small whale with a blunt snout.
  • Dolphin: a highly intelligent marine mammal with a long snout.
  • Dugong: a large, slow-moving marine mammal.
  • Manatee: a tropical marine mammal, similar to the dugong.
Phrasal Verbs
  • The term is a noun and does not form phrasal verbs.
Related Idioms
  • "To be like a sea-pig in a storm": (rare) to be helpless or out of one's element.
    • He felt like a sea-pig in a storm when he tried to fix the engine. (He felt completely lost and helpless.)