| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000. |
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| dog |
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| PRONUNCIATION: |  dôg, d g |
| NOUN: | 1. A domesticated carnivorous mammal (Canis familiaris) related to the foxes and wolves and raised in a wide variety of breeds. 2. Any of various carnivorous mammals of the family Canidae, such as the dingo. 3. A male animal of the family Canidae, especially of the fox or a domesticated breed. 4. Any of various other animals, such as the prairie dog. 5. Informal a. A person: You won, you lucky dog. b. A person regarded as contemptible: You stole my watch, you dog. 6. Slang a. A person regarded as unattractive or uninteresting. b. Something of inferior or low quality: “The President had read the speech to some of his friends and they told him it was a dog” (John P. Roche). c. An investment that produces a low return or a loss. 7. dogs Slang The feet. 8. See andiron. 9. Slang A hot dog; a wiener. 10. Any of various hooked or U-shaped metallic devices used for gripping or holding heavy objects. 11. Astronomy A sun dog. | | ADVERB: | Totally; completely. Often used in combination: dog-tired. | | TRANSITIVE VERB: | Inflected forms: dogged, dog·ging, dogs
1. To track or trail persistently: “A stranger then is still dogging us” (Arthur Conan Doyle). 2. To hold or fasten with a mechanical device: “Watertight doors and hatches were dropped into place and dogged down to give the ship full watertight integrity” (Tom Clancy). | | IDIOMS: | dog it Slang To fail to expend the effort needed to do or accomplish something. go to the dogs To go to ruin; degenerate. put on the dog Informal To make an ostentatious display of elegance, wealth, or culture. | | ETYMOLOGY: | Middle English dogge, from Old English docga.
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| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by the Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
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