English

go the whole hog

Go the whole hog may come from English hog ‘shilling’.

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed

Lineage

Earliest quotation: 1831, [Miscellaneous]: “Having nothing else to do, I thought that I…”

Made of the words go + the + whole + hog

Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰeh₁- ‘to leave’

Proto-Germanic *gāną ‘to go’

Proto-West Germanic *gān ‘to go’

Old English gān ‘to go’

Middle English gon

English go

Proto-Indo-European *tód

Proto-Germanic *þa

Old English þē ‘the’

Middle English þe

English the

Proto-Indo-European *kéh₂ilos ‘healthy’

Proto-Germanic *hailaz ‘whole’

Proto-West Germanic *hail ‘healthy’

Old English hāl ‘healthy’

Middle English whol ‘healthy’

English whole

Middle English hog ‘a pig or swine, especially one that is…’

English hog

Every English word from English hog

verb To do something as completely or entirely as possible; to hold back or reserve nothing.

Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.