to bag
Preserved but no longer current.
Secure for oneself; probably an extension of the sporting use of the word, meaning, to put into one's bag what one has shot, caught, or trapped. Hence, a good bag, a large catch of game, fish, or other animals sought after by sportsmen.
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 “to bag” mean?
Secure for oneself; probably an extension of the sporting use of the word, meaning, to put into one's bag what one has shot, caught, or trapped. Hence, a good bag, a large catch of game, fish, or other animals sought after by sportsmen.
Is “to bag” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.