shag

I. vb

1.

to have sex (with). A common vulgarism in Britain and Australia which is unknown in this sense in the USA. The word is an archaic relative of 'shake', which was used in a sexual sense from at least the 16th century. In Britain shag took over the taboo role in the 18th century. In modern usage the word is considered less offensive than fuck in male company, but more vulgar than other synonyms. Like 'fuck' it occurs in other forms, such as the noun shag, the intensifying adjective 'shagging' and phrases such as 'shag off'.

► 'When I was 171 was obsessively in love with a girl who only liked me. It blighted my adolescence. I would have given any-thing to shag her.' (Ben Elton, quoted in NME, March 1989)

2.

American

to depart, leave. The 1990s use of the term, which may be related to earlier uses of the word to denote a fast jitterbug-style dance or later a reluctant, shuffling walk, also occurs in the phrase 'shag off/out'. By the 18th century shag had come to mean 'move quickly' in American speech.

II. n

British

1.

a sexual act or a sexual partner. See the verb form for origins.

2.

a term of endearment in use among London financial traders in 2000, proba-bly from earlier public-school usage