What does "gig" mean?
Originally (music), a performing engagement by a musician or musical group; (by extension, film, television, theater) a job or role for a performer.
Gig
/ɡɪɡ/ noun, verb, slang
noun, verb, slang ·Common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: Originally (music), a performing engagement by a musician or musical group; (by extension, film, television, theater) a job or role for a performer.
- Grammar: gig is listed as noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: act, angle, appointment, assignment.
- Useful contrasts: avoid, byte, cancel.
- Usage evidence: Teaching ESL is usually a gig for losers and boozers.
How to use "gig"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "gig" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "gig" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "gig" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "gig" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "gig" is acting as noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "act" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
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Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "gig", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 Originally (music), a performing engagement by a musician or musical group; (by extension, film, television, theater) a job or role for a performer. informal
"I caught one of the Rolling Stones’ first gigs in Richmond."
- 2 Clipping of gigabyte (“one billion (1,000,000,000) bytes”). abbreviation, alt-of, clipping, informal
"This picture is almost a gig; don’t you want to resize it?"
- 3 A top which is made to spin by tying a piece of string around it and then throwing it so that the string unwinds rapidly; a whipping-top. informal, obsolete
"Peda[nt]. Thou diſputes like an Infant: goe vvhip thy Gigg. / Pag[e]. Lende me your Horne to make one, and I vvill vvhip about your Infamie vnũ cita a gigge of a Cuckolds horne."
- 4 A frivolous, playful, or wanton young woman; a giglet or giglot. informal, obsolete
- 5 Synonym of fishgig or fizgig (“a spear with a barb on the end of it, used for catching fish, frogs, or other small animals”). informal
"On toward dusk some little gypsy boys whittled gigs from river-birch limbs and went to a backwater and gigged frogs until they had a basketful."
Show 15 more definitions
- 6 a booking for musicians wordnet
- 7 Any job, especially one that is freelance or temporary, or done on an on-demand basis. broadly, informal
"I had this gig as a file clerk but it wasn’t my style so I left."
- 8 Any unit of measurement having the SI prefix giga-. informal, slang
- 9 A person with an odd appearance; also, a foolish person. British, archaic, dialectal, informal
- 10 small two-wheeled horse-drawn carriage; with two seats and no hood wordnet
- 11 A demerit received for some infraction of a military deportment or dress code. US, informal
"I received gigs for having buttons of my uniform undone."
- 12 Senses relating to enjoyment.; Fun; frolics. British, archaic, dialectal, informal, slang
"Such was his toil, when one night coming home, / Such swell uncivil, who'd been out to roam / In search of lark, or some delicious gig / The mind delights in, when 'tis in prime twig,—"
- 13 tender that is a light ship's boat; often for personal use of captain wordnet
- 14 Senses relating to enjoyment.; A fanciful impulse; a whim; also, a joke. informal, obsolete
"I muſt goe ſee him preſently, / For this is ſuch a gig: for certaine Gentlemen / The Fiend rides on a Fiddleſticke."
- 15 long and light rowing boat; especially for racing wordnet
- 16 Senses relating to vehicles.; A small, narrow, open boat carried in a larger ship, and used for transportation between the ship and the shore, another vessel, etc. informal
"She [a frigate] also carried a Commodore's Barge, a Captain's Gig, and a "dingy," a small yawl, with a crew of apprentice boys. […] Above all, the officers see to it that the Commodore's Barge and the Captain's Gig are manned by gentlemanly youths, who do credit to their country, and form agreeable objects for the eyes of the Commodore or Captain to repose upon as he tranquilly sits in the stern, when pulled ashore by his barge-men or gig-men, as the case may be."
- 17 a cluster of hooks (without barbs) that is drawn through a school of fish to hook their bodies; used when fish are not biting wordnet
- 18 Senses relating to vehicles.; A similar rowing boat or sailboat, especially one used for racing; specifically, a six-oared sea rowing boat commonly found in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly. Southern-England, broadly, informal
- 19 an implement with a shaft and barbed point used for catching fish wordnet
- 20 Senses relating to vehicles.; A two-wheeled carriage drawn by a single horse. historical, informal
"While Sir William was with them, Mr. Collins devoted his mornings to driving him out in his gig, and shewing him the country; […]"
Verb
- 1 To play (a musical instrument) at a gig. informal, transitive
- 2 To make a joke, often condescendingly, at the expense of (someone); to make fun of. informal, transitive
"His older cousin was just gigging him about being in love with that girl from school."
- 3 To spear (fish, etc.) with a gig or fizgig. informal, transitive
- 4 To impose a demerit (on someone) for an infraction of a military deportment or dress code. US, informal, transitive
"His sergeant gigged him for an unmade bunk."
- 5 Sometimes followed by it: to ride in a gig (“a two-wheeled carriage drawn by a single horse”). informal, intransitive
Show 3 more definitions
- 6 To catch or fish with a gig or fizgig. informal, intransitive
- 7 To engage in a musical performance, act in a theatre production, etc. informal, intransitive
"The Rolling Stones were gigging around Richmond at the time."
- 8 To work at any job, especially one that is freelance or temporary, or done on an on-demand basis. broadly, informal, intransitive
Synonyms
All synonymsExample
"Teaching ESL is usually a gig for losers and boozers."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "gig"?
Common synonyms include: act, angle, appointment, assignment, bait the hook, berth.
How do you use "gig" in a sentence?
Teaching ESL is usually a gig for losers and boozers.
How do you pronounce "gig"?
Pronounced /ɡɪɡ/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
The etymology of the noun is unknown, but compare Old French gigue (“a fiddle”). The verb is derived from the noun.
Etymology 2
Sense 1 is a clipping of gigabyte, while sense 2 is a clipping of giga- (prefix multiplying the unit to which it is attached by one billion).
Etymology 3
The noun is derived from Middle English gigg, gigge, gygge (“spinning object; a top”); further origin uncertain, possibly: * from Old Norse [Term?] (compare Danish gig (“a top”), dialectal Norwegian giga (“to shake about”)), from Proto-Germanic *gīganą (“to move, wish, desire”), from Proto-Indo-European *gʰeyǵʰ-, *gʰeygʰ- (“to yawn, gape, long for, desire”); or * ultimately onomatopoeic. Senses 2–4 are thought to derive from sense 1 (“whipping-top”), but their exact relationship is unclear. The verb is derived from the noun.
Etymology 4
From Middle English gig, gigge, gegge, possibly either: * from Old French gigue (“tall, skinny girl”) (modern French gigue), from Old Norse gikkr (“pert person”) (related to Danish gjæk (“fool, jester”), Swedish gäck (“fool, jester; a wag”); see also geck); or * from Middle English gigg, gigge, gygge (“spinning object; a top”) (see etymology 3).
Etymology 5
The noun is derived from a clipping of fishgig, fizgig, possibly from Spanish fisga (“harpoon”). The verb is derived from the noun.