pigs in clover
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
People who have money but don't know how to behave themselves decently. Also, a game consisting of a box divided into recesses into which one has to roll marbles by tilting the box.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “pigs in clover” mean?
People who have money but don't know how to behave themselves decently. Also, a game consisting of a box divided into recesses into which one has to roll marbles by tilting the box.
Is “pigs in clover” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.