to live high on the hog
5
8.2
- idiom
- Informal
:
vivir a todo lujo
- Now that he has a well-paying job, he can live high on the hog with fine dining and upscale shopping.
- live high on the hog
You know, just living high on the hog, baby.
- You know, just living high on the hog, baby.
Examples
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That's how we end up with uber-rich pastors living high on the hog or extravagant buildings to worship in.
Blog text (6) -
They all wear 1000 suits and live high on the hog while people are in poverty.
Blog text (11) -
One day you too can live high on the hog
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Like we're living high on the hog.
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I'm quite sure her kids are eating high on the hog, just like their mom.
Blog text (32) -
I should have stayed with her; I'd be living high on the hog right now.
Fiction book (2001) -
It's time to live high on the hog—so get a job!
Fiction book (2002) -
I think they probably are living high on the hog with expense accounts, cars, very high salaries, and yes, those exorbitant pensions.
Blog text (27) -
One moment, you're living high on the hog, and the next moment, you're visiting your hubby in jail, eating ramen?
-
After years of hard work, they were finally able to live high on the hog and enjoy luxurious vacations.
Synonyms
9
8.2
Enjoy yourself by spending a lot on expensive things and fun
Enjoying a comfortable and rich life after hard times
How Comfortable
- Informal
5
8.2
121
3.1
Surface Forms
Morphology
A B1 learner who knows 'live', 'high', 'on' and 'hog' would not be able to infer 'to live in luxury' because the literal image of being 'on a hog' does not transparently map to wealth; the idiomatic sense comes from a cultural/pork-cut metaphor and is unpredictable from the parts. This makes the expression language-specific and not compositionally deducible for learners without prior exposure.
Etymology
Live high on the hog comes from the idea that the best, most expensive meat came from the upper, high, part of the hog, so people who ate that meat were living very well. That's why the phrase now means 'to live in great comfort'.