jag (2) — ONAD

jag2 /jaɡ, dʒæɡ

▸ noun

1 informal, mainly North American a bout of unrestrained activity or emotion, especially drinking, crying, or laughing:

an incredible crying jag.

2 dialect a bundle:

a jag of hay.

– ORIGIN late 16th century (in jag2 (SENSE 2)): of unknown origin. In the late 18th century the sense was ‘portion, quantity’, later ‘as much alcohol as one can hold’, hence ‘a binge’. jag2 (SENSE 1) dates from the early 20th century.