English Reference

Word

veg

UK/vˈɛdʒ/

Definitions

01to relax completely

B1

v. to spend time doing nothing or relaxing in a lazy way, usually after working hard.

v. to engage in complete inactivity or passive relaxation, often as a recovery from mental or physical exertion.

“After a long week at the office, I just want to veg out in front of the TV.”

“The students spent the entire weekend vegging in the common room, exhausted by the intensity of their final examinations.”

Informal

Usage

Often used as the phrasal verb 'veg out'.

Synonyms

Antonyms

03vegetarian

B2

adj. used to describe food that does not contain meat.

adj. a clipping of 'vegetarian', typically used in informal contexts or on menus to indicate meat-free options.

“Is there a veg option for the main course at the wedding?”

“The restaurant clearly labels its veg and non-veg dishes to accommodate different dietary requirements.”

Informal · Dialect

Teaching tip

This usage is particularly common in Indian English to distinguish between vegetarian and non-vegetarian food.

Synonyms

vegetarianmeat-free

Antonyms

non-veg

Etymology

Clipping of various related words including vegetable, vegetarian, and vegetate.

Coined in a 1948 paper in the American Journal of Psychology by Robert S. Harper and S. S. Stevens.http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0002-9556(194807)61%3A3%3C343%3AAPSOWA%3E2.0.CO%3B2-D, http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0002-9556(195304)66%3A2%3C304%3AANCTVS%3E2.0.CO%3B2-Y

Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Domain

Psychology

This entry

Level
B1 · Intermediate
Frequency
Frequent
Updated

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