hogleg

In real, traceable use. Part of the curated seed collection; community review is coming.

Meaning · English

Any large-caliber handgun, typically with a long barrel.

Register: slang

Where it’s used: Used American English

Examples

A plain-clothes man with his coat off and his hog's leg looking like a fire plug against his ribs took one eye off his evening paper […].

Usage example from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-30)

Sources & notes

Adapted from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-30 via kaikki.org).

Common questions

What does “hogleg” mean?

Any large-caliber handgun, typically with a long barrel.

Is “hogleg” formal or informal?

hogleg is generally slang.