meaning - What does "fig" mean in "showing the fig"?


From Etymonline



"Showing the fig" was a vulgar gesture made by sticking the thumb between two fingers, a display which vaguely resembles a fig, itself symbolic of a vagina (sykon also meant "vulva").



What does "fig" mean in "showing the fig"? I looked up the dictionaries, which say either a kind of fruit or nothing, which doesn't fit the context.



Answer



All you need to do is parse the excerpt from etymonline, and use your imagination:


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