bird-dog
1. To become romantically involved with someone else's significant other, especially when done by a man. I can't believe that guy bird-dogged me and stole my girlfriend! A: "You know Alicia's with Lou—would you really bird-dog him like that? B: "I don't have a choice. I love her, and I'm pretty sure she loves me too." You can't bird-dog your best friend like that, man. Stealing his girl, whew, that's cold.
2. To pay close, usually unwelcome, attention to someone else. Would you quit bird-dogging me and let me work in peace? It's a balancing act to make sure your employees are actually getting things done without bird-dogging them. Come on, I'm washing the car like I said I would, so there's no need to bird-dog me.
dog
1. verb To judge or criticize someone for something. Why are you dogging me about this? It's really not a big deal. If my friends see me with this stupid haircut, they'll dog me for months! After I flubbed that easy catch in the outfield, I knew the coach was gonna dog me about it back in the dugout.
2. verb To follow or pursue someone. You've been dogging me since I left the gas station—what's your deal, man? They hired a private detective to dog him for a few weeks to see what he was up to. You're famous now, so get ready for the paparazzi to dog you whenever you're out in public.
3. verb To persistently trouble someone. I really think she should see a therapist if memories of the accident keep dogging her like that. Even if I move to a new town, my involvement with the crime will still dog me. It'll follow me wherever I go for the rest of my life. Look, these rumors will continue to dog you until you publicly dispel them.
4. noun Something of poor quality. That movie was a real dog—I left before it was over. Darn it, my dog of a suitcase fell apart as I was trying to pack it. Please tell me you're going to get rid of this old dog before it breaks down for good and strands you somewhere
5. noun, rude slang An unattractive or unappealing female. I'm not asking that girl out—she's a real dog! Jackie's a nice girl, she's just kind of a dog, you know? A: "Isn't that girl over by the bar a cutie?" B: "Did you forget to put your contacts in today? She's a dog!"
6. noun, slang The phone. The term comes from rhyming slang in which "dog" is short for "dog and bone," which rhymes with "phone." Primarily heard in UK, Australia. Is that the dog? Can someone answer it? My sister has been blabbing on the dog for hours every night ever since she got a boyfriend. It's so annoying. Would you get off the dog already? I need to make a call!
dog around
1. To follow or pursue someone tenaciously. A noun or pronoun can be used between "dog" and "around." They hired a private detective to dog him around for a few weeks to see what he was up to. The player spent most of the game being dogged around the field by the other team. You're famous now, so get ready for the paparazzi to dog you around whenever you're out in public.
2. To continue to be a source of frustration, difficulty, or hardship for someone. A noun or pronoun can be used between "dog" and "around." That conviction I got as a teenager has dogged me around my whole life. Look, these rumors will continue to dog you around until you publicly dispel them. I really think she should see a therapist if memories of the accident keep dogging her around like that.
dog it
1. To be lazy; to loaf or shirk duty; to fail to put forth the effort necessary to achieve or accomplish something. Jim became totally disheartened after losing his job and has been dogging it around the house for the past month. I hate my job, so I just dog it in the office until it's time to go home. I once had dreams of going to med school, but I dogged it during my last two years in college and can't get in anywhere now.
2. To renege on, back out of, hastily leave, or flee from something. I'm afraid the company dogged it from the deal at the last minute. We dogged it out of there once we heard the sirens blaring. Come on, you can't dog it now! Who will emcee the charity auction if not you?
dog out
1. slang To subject someone to severe mistreatment or abuse. A noun or pronoun can be used between "dog" and "out." Turns out he'd been dogging me out for more than a year—cheating on me, stealing from me, and then making me think I was crazy for ever suspecting him. I wanted to play football in college, and I didn't go to that school because the football coach is known to dog out his players and have an extremely strict practice regimen. I know I screwed up, but I don't think the boss had to dog me out in front of everyone like that.
2. slang By extension, to abuse someone verbally; to trash talk someone. A noun or pronoun can be used between "dog" and "out." She came out of the house and started dogging her husband out in front of the whole neighborhood. He's made a living from dogging out people on his radio show. He's a great player, so at least he can back it up when he dogs you out on the court.
it's dogged that does it
Hard work and perseverance leads to success. Well, keep going—it's dogged that does it!
prairie dog
1. To pop one's head up, especially from below or behind something or some surface, in a manner resembling a prairie dog emerging from its burrow. Everyone started prairie dogging in their cubicles to see where the music was coming from. The puppy prairie dogged the moment she heard the bag of treats being opened.
2. vulgar slang To need to defecate so badly that one's feces begin to come out through the anus involuntarily. I need to find a bathroom now—I'm starting to prairie dog! I was prairie dogging it by the time we finally got to a rest stop.
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.