dog

Where “dog” sits in English frequency

Definition

1. 1
   A mammal of the family Canidae:
2. 2
   A mammal of the family Canidae:
3. 3
   A mammal of the family Canidae:
4. 4
   The meat of this animal, eaten as food.
5. 5
   A person:
6. 6
   A person:
7. 7
   A person:
8. 8
   A person:
9. 9
   A mechanical device or support:
10. 10
    A mechanical device or support:
11. 11
    A mechanical device or support:
12. 12
    A mechanical device or support:
13. 13
    The eighteenth Lenormand card.
14. 14
    A hot dog: a frankfurter, wiener, or similar sausage; or a sandwich made from this.
15. 15
    An underdog.
16. 16
    Foot; toe.
17. 17
    (from "dog and bone") Phone or mobile phone.
18. 18
    One of the cones used to divide up a racetrack when training horses.
19. 19
    Something that performs poorly.
20. 20
    Something that performs poorly.
21. 21
    A cock, as of a gun.
22. 22
    A dance having a brief vogue in the 1960s in which the actions of a dog were mimicked.

Etymology

Etymology tree Old English [Term?]? Proto-Germanic *-gô Proto-West Germanic *-gō Old English -ga Old English dogga Middle English dogge English dog Inherited from Middle English dogge (akin to Scots dug), from Old English dogga, docga, of uncertain origin. The original meaning seems to have been a common dog, as opposed to a well-bred one, or something like 'cur', and perhaps later came to be used for stocky dogs. Possibly a pet-form diminutive with suffix -ga (compare frocga (“frog”), *picga (“pig”)), appended to a base *dog-, *doc- of unclear origin and meaning. One possibility is Old English dox (“dark, swarthy”) (compare frocga from frox). Another proposal is that it derives from Proto-West Germanic *dugan (“to be suitable”), the origin of Old English dugan (“to be good, worthy, useful”), English dow, Dutch deugen, German taugen. The theory goes that it could have been an epithet for dogs, commonly used by children, meaning "good/useful animal". Another is that it is related to *docce (“stock, muscle”), from Proto-West Germanic *dokkā (“round mass, ball, muscle, doll”), whence English dock (“stumpy tail”). In 14th-century England, hound (from Old English hund) was the general word for all domestic canines, and dog referred to a subtype resembling the modern mastiff and bulldog. By the 16th century, dog had become the general word, and hound had begun to refer only to breeds used for hunting. In the 16th century, the word dog was adopted by several continental European languages as their word for mastiff. Despite similarities in forms and meaning, not related to Mbabaram dog.

This word in other languages

Frequently Asked Questions