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bewhigged

Archaic Terms
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

Wearing a wig, especially the elaborate powdered wigs of 17th- and 18th-century fashion.

Detailed Definition
“Bewhigged” appears in satirical or historical poetry to critique vanity, class, or artifice. The wig symbolizes social performance, legal authority, or outdated custom. Poets use it to mock pretension or evoke period detail, linking external adornment to internal falsity or the burdens of public role-playing.
Example
Example in poetry:
The judge, bewhigged and stern, passed sentence cold; Bewhigged ghosts of law still haunt the marble halls; She mocked the bewhigged fools who rule by fear; In powdered wig, he played the king for a day
Additional Notes
“Bewhigged” describes someone wearing an elaborate powdered wig, symbolizing 17th–18th century authority, vanity, or artifice. In satirical poetry, it critiques social performance, legal pomposity, or outdated custom. The wig becomes a metaphor for external identity masking inner falsity. Related terms include “periwigged,” “powdered,” and “coiffed,” but “bewhigged” uniquely ties fashion to power structures, evoking specific historical tensions between appearance and truth.
Also Known As
wearing a wig
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