An object offered in a manner that conceals its true value, especially its lack of value. For example, Eric believes that buying a used car is buying a pig in a poke. This expression alludes to the practice of substituting a worthless object, such as a cat, for the costly suckling pig a customer has bought and wrapping it in a poke, or sack. It dates from a time when buyers of groceries relied on a weekly farmers' market and, unless they were cautious enough to check the poke's contents, would not discover the skullduggery until they got home. The word poke dates from the 13th century but is now used mainly in the southern United States. The idiom was first recorded in John Heywood's
1562 collection of proverbs. Also see
let the cat out of the bag.
Pig in a poke
| Idioms: pig in a poke |
| Wikipedia: Pig in a poke |
Pig-in-a-poke is an idiom that refers to a confidence trick originating in the Late Middle Ages, when meat was scarce but apparently rats and cats were not.
The scheme entailed the sale of a suckling pig in a poke (bag). The wriggling bag would actually contain a cat (not particularly prized as a source of meat) that was sold to the victim in an unopened bag. The French term acheter (un) chat en poche (to buy a cat in a bag) refers to an actual sale of this nature, as do many European equivalents, while the English expression refers to the appearance of the trick.[1]
A common colloquial expression in the English language, to buy a pig in a poke, is to make a risky purchase without inspecting the item beforehand. The phrase can also be applied to accepting an idea or plan without a full understanding of its basis. Similar expressions exist in other languages, most of them meaning to buy a cat in a bag, with some exceptions:
| Language | Phrase | Translation (if differs from the English phrase) |
| Croatian | kupiti mačka u vreći | to buy a cat in a sack |
| Czech | koupit zajíce v pytli | to buy a hare in a sack |
| Danish | at købe katten i sækken | to buy the cat in the sack |
| Dutch | een kat in de zak kopen | to buy a cat in the sack |
| Estonian | ostma põrsast kotis | to buy a pig in a sack |
| French | acheter chat en poche | to buy a cat in a bag |
| Finnish | ostaa sika säkissä | to buy a pig in a sack |
| German | die Katze im Sack kaufen | to buy a cat in a sack |
| Greek | αγοράζω γουρούνι στο σακί | |
| Hebrew | חתול בשק | cat in a sack |
| Hungarian | zsákbamacska | cat in a sack |
| Icelandic | að kaupa köttinn í sekknum | to buy the cat in the sack |
| Indonesian | kucing dalam karung | cat in a sack |
| Latvian | pirkt kaķi maisā | to buy a cat in a sack |
| Lithuanian | pirkti katę maiše | to buy a cat in a sack |
| Macedonian | да купиш мачка во вреќа | to buy the cat in the sack |
| Norwegian | kjøpe katta i sekken | to buy the cat in the sack |
| Polish | kupić kota w worku | to buy a cat in a sack |
| Portuguese | comer gato por lebre | to eat cat for hare |
| Romanian | a fi prins cu mâṭa în sac | being caught with the cat in the bag (i.e., caught while cheating or lying) |
| Russian | купить кота в мешке | to buy a cat in a sack |
| Spanish | dar gato por liebre | to give a cat instead of a hare |
| Serbian | купити мачку у џаку | to buy a cat in a sack |
| Slovak | kúpiť mačku vo vreci | to buy a cat in a sack |
| Slovene | kupiti mačka v žaklju | to buy a cat in a sack |
| Swedish | köpa grisen i säcken | to buy the pig in the sack |
This trick also appears to be the origin of the expressions "Let the cat out of the bag",[2] meaning to reveal that which is secret (if the would-be buyer opened the bag, the trick would be revealed);[1] and left holding the bag, meaning to find oneself with nothing for their efforts, as the cat (and perhaps the customer) is quite likely to flee when the bag is opened. The expression left holding the bag could also be a reference to a snipe hunt as the victim of the prank is left alone in the wilderness, holding a bag.
Pig in a Poke is a fictional game show in the 1985 comedy film National Lampoon's European Vacation (which was based on Family Feud, but had the families wear pig costumes).
References
Notes
- ^ a b Brewer, Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, 1898.
- ^ Let the cat out of the bag
Bibliography
- E. Cobham Brewer, Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 1898.
- Funk, Charles Earle, A Hog on Ice: & Other Curious Expressions. HarperResource, 2002. ISBN 0-06-051329-2.
- National Lampoon's European Vacation - The television game show the Griswolds played that won them the trip.
This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)
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Copyrights:
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 | Idioms. The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. Read more |
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| Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Pig in a poke". Read more |
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Mentioned in
- pig (Idiom)
- poke (Idiom)
- let the cat out of the bag (Idiom)
- Hargus "Pig" Robbins (Country Artist, '60s-'90s)
