porgy

IPA/ˈpɔː.ɡi/
KK[pˈɔrɡi]IPA/ˈpɔːr.ɡi/

porgy — noun

  • porgysingular
  • porgiesplural

1. a kind of sea fish like a sea bream, or meat from this fish that people eat.

1.nounC1
Definition

a kind of sea fish like a sea bream, or meat from this fish that people eat.

Example

Fishermen caught porgy near the rocks before sunrise.

collocation: catch porgy

At the market, whole porgies lay on ice beside squid.

plural market use: porgies

Common collocations
  • catch porgy
  • whole porgies
  • grilled porgy
  • porgy meat
  • serve porgy with rice
Synonyms
  • sea bream

    a broader everyday name; porgy is often used for a similar market fish

  • bream

    broader and less exact; it can also refer to freshwater fish

  • scup

    more specific and regional, especially for one North American kind

Grammar Patterns

catch porgy

cook or grill porgy

serve porgy with + food

Usage Note

Often used both for the fish itself and for it as a dish. In menus, shops, and cooking talk, the word may name the food without adding fish or meat.

Common Mistakes

We bought three porgy at the dock.
We bought three porgies at the dock.
Use porgies for the plural when you mean several separate fish.
The soup was made from a porgy meat.
The soup was made from porgy meat.
Meat names are usually uncountable when you mean the food.

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Sea bream is the safest broad comparison word for porgy, because both can name sea fish often sold whole for eating. Porgy is less common in everyday English and is more likely to appear in fishing talk, fish markets, or restaurant menus. Bream is wider and less exact, since it can also mean several freshwater fish, so it is not always a full substitute. Scup is narrower: it usually refers to one North American kind of porgy rather than the whole group. If you want a general label, sea bream is often safer. If a menu or fish seller says porgy, keep the more specific word: buy a whole porgy, or grill porgy with lemon.

porgy ↗sea breambream ↗scup

Etymology

English

Probably formed in English as a changed form of pogy, an older fish name. The newer form porgy became a label for this kind of sea fish and for its meat as food.