BOG


Meaning of BOG in English

I. ˈbäg, ˈbȯg noun

( -s )

Usage: often attributive

Etymology: of Celtic origin; akin to Irish Gaelic & Scottish Gaelic bog soft (respectively from & akin to OIr bocc ), Scottish Gaelic boglach swamp, Irish Gaelic bogach; akin to Old English būgan to bend — more at bow

1.

a. : wet spongy ground where a heavy body is likely to sink : quagmire , morass ; especially : an inadequately drained area rich in plant residues, usually acid in reaction, frequently surrounding a body of open water, and having a characterstic flora (as of sedges, heaths, and sphagnum) — compare marsh , meadow , swamp

b. : low-lying land having a thick layer of peat

2. : land making up a bog

II. verb

( bogged ; bogged ; bogging ; bogs )

transitive verb

: to cause to sink into or as if into a bog : submerge in a bog : mire , impede : slow up

treacherous ground in which you can easily get bogged

too much pedantry bogs what might otherwise have some interest

— often used with down

the book is the result of much careful research, but it is not bogged down by it — John Gould

intransitive verb

: to become sunk in or as if in a bog : become impeded and slowed up — usually used with down

work on the new highway bogged down for lack of cement

the attack would bog down sooner or later — Norman Mailer

III. ˈbäg noun

( -s )

Etymology: short for obsolete boghouse privy, from bog to defecate (of unknown origin) + house (I)

Britain : toilet : loo

Webster's New International English Dictionary.      Новый международный словарь английского языка Webster.