pig-holen.
/ˈpɪɡhəʊl/, U.S. /ˈpɪɡˌ(h)oʊl/ 1. Metallurgy. A hole in the wall of a steel furnace through which additional supplies of pig iron may be introduced. rare.Apparently only attested in dictionaries or glossaries.
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1890 Cent. Dict. Pig-hole, in some metallurgic operations, a hole, provided with a cover, in the wall of a furnace, through which a crucible may have an additional supply of pig-metal put in it without the operation of the furnace being interrupted.
1906 N.E.D. at Pig sb.1 13 Pig-hole, an aperture in a steel furnace through which fresh supplies of pig-iron may be introduced.
2. A large burrow excavated or occupied by a warthog.
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the world > animals > by habitat > habitat > [noun] > dwelling place or shelter > burrow
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1928 M. Johnson Safari xiii. 253 We ran into a pig-hole. While we were getting the car out Osa discovered two rhino slowly walking towards us.
1999 B. Smuts in J. M. Coetzee Lives of Animals 111 Dido [sc. a baboon], when chased by an unwelcome suitor, would dash behind some cover and then dive into a pig-hole.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2006; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1890