- The idiomatic phrase “when pigs fly” refers to something that is unlikely to ever happen.
- “On the pig’s back” (Irish: ar m(h)uin na muice) is an Irish expression meaning to be in a fortunate situation, or living an easy or luxurious lifestyle.
- “In a pig’s eye” is an expression meaning, “That’s not true.”
- “Sweating like a Pig” to denote sweating profusely. This sounds illogical, as pigs have ineffective sweat glands.
- “Eating like a Hog” refers to the subject having poor tablemanners.
- Another pig-related idiom from England is “buying a pig in a poke” (buying a piglet in a sack) which means committing yourself to something without carefully inspecting it first.
- The term “slicker than a greased pig” refers to an event that went well without any setbacks. The term “greased pig” can also refer to something that is difficult to obtain.
- “Pigs Get Fat. Hogs get Slaughtered” means those who work hard will get what they deserve but those who try to gain something for nothing will not get very far.
- The phrase “pig’s ear” means a useless object. To make a (total) pig’s ear of something means to (totally) mess it up. To attempt to “make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear” means to try in vain to make something good out of something worthless or inherently bad.
- The expression “pig’s arse” is an Australian colloquialism, signifying disbelief.
- “As happy as a pig in mud” is used to signify someone is very happy.
- “Bleed like a stuck pig” is a phrase used to describe profuse bleeding, originating from a hog slaughtering technique whereby the pig is stabbed in a main artery, usually with an anticoagulant on the device used for stabbing, and dies by bleeding profusely.
- “Do not cast your pearls before swine” is a phrase of Biblical origin which instructs one not to share something of value with those who will not recognize its value.
- “To wait like a pig for Christmas” refers in Finland to expect something very nasty and uncomfortable to happen in the near future while others anticipate a happy time.
- “To behave like a pig in a rasberry orchard” refers in Finland to greedy, immodest, uncontrollable and irresponsible behaviour. Pigs are fond of raspberries and will consume them at will.
