corgi

noun

Etymology: PIE word *ḱwṓ Borrowed from Welsh corgi, a compound of cor (“dwarf”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *(s)ker- (“to cut off”)) + gi (the soft mutation of ci (“dog”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ḱwṓ (“dog”), perhaps from *peḱ- (“livestock; wealth”)). The rare plural form corgwn is borrowed from Welsh corgwn.

1. Ellipsis of Welsh corgi (“a type of herding dog originating from Wales, having a small body, short legs, and fox-like features such as large ears; two separate breeds are recognized: the Cardigan Welsh Corgi and the Pembroke Welsh Corgi”).

   “By this time the Pembrokeshire—the short-tailed corgwn—were increasing in popularity very rapidly. The Cardiganshire variety lagged behind their more numerous cousins, but, even so, almost all the larger shows of this country had classes […]”

   “[W]hich news item do we have to worry about and have a view on? Not, presumably, the fact that the Queen is going cool on corgies; probably not how space exploration is getting on; townies can maybe skip the fates of either cows or badgers.”