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DictionarystyPig enclosure
noun

sty

STY/staɪ/

A small enclosure where pigs are kept.

Two pigs root around inside the sty.

Two pigs occupy a small fenced pen with a shelter, trough and closed gate.
Etymology
styOld Englishhall, pen

The word for an enclosure became the familiar name for a pigpen. Calling a room or home a “sty” transfers the imagined filth of a pigpen to human surroundings.

In context

Vivid Audio Library344:12
And oh, I must speak to him soon, and you must be prepared to see him soon, for I cannot bear your remaining at Belorp like a jewel in a sty.
The Ordeal of Richard Feverel by George Meredith (Part 1) | Full Classic Victorian Novel Audiobook

More examples

  • She cleaned the sty before adding fresh bedding.
  • A wooden gate closed the pig sty.
  • The farmer repaired the sty’s low fence.

Forms

sty · sties

Similar words

pen
A pen can house many kinds of animals; a sty specifically houses pigs.
pigpen
Pigpen is the familiar equivalent of a sty; sty can also be used figuratively for a filthy place.