let sleeping dogs lie

dog

[dawg, dog] noun, verb, dogged, dog·ging.
noun
1.
a domesticated canid, Canis familiaris, bred in many varieties.
2.
any carnivore of the dogfamily Canidae, having prominent canine teeth and, in the wild state, a long and slender muzzle, a deep-chested muscular body, a bushy tail, and large, erect ears. Compare canid.
3.
the male of such an animal.
4.
any of various animals resembling a dog.
5.
a despicable man or youth.
6.
Informal. a fellow in general: a lucky dog.
7.
dogs, Slang. feet.
8.
Slang.
a.
something worthless or of extremely poor quality: That used car you bought is a dog.
b.
an utter failure; flop: Critics say his new play is a dog.
9.
Slang. an ugly, boring, or crude person.
10.
Slang. hot dog.
11.
(initial capital letter) Astronomy. either of two constellations, Canis Major or Canis Minor.
12.
Machinery.
a.
any of various mechanical devices, as for gripping or holding something.
b.
a projection on a moving part for moving steadily or for tripping another part with which it engages.
13.
Also called gripper, nipper. Metalworking. a device on a drawbench for drawing the work through the die.
14.
a cramp binding together two timbers.
15.
an iron bar driven into a stone or timber to provide a means of lifting it.
16.
an andiron; firedog.
17.
Meteorology. a sundog or fogdog.
18.
a word formerly used in communications to represent the letter D.
verb (used with object)
19.
to follow or track like a dog, especially with hostile intent; hound.
20.
to drive or chase with a dog or dogs.
21.
Machinery. to fasten with dogs.
00:10
Let sleeping dogs lie is always a great word to know.
So is interrobang. Does it mean:
a screen or mat covered with a dark material for shielding a camera lens from excess light or glare.
a printed punctuation mark (‽), available only in some typefaces, designed to combine the question mark (?) and the exclamation point (!), indicating a mixture of query and interjection, as after a rhetorical question.
LEARN MORE UNUSUAL WORDS WITH WORD DYNAMO...
Idioms
22.
dog it, Informal.
a.
to shirk one's responsibility; loaf on the job.
b.
to retreat, flee, renege, etc.: a sponsor who dogged it when needed most.
23.
go to the dogs, Informal. to deteriorate; degenerate morally or physically: This neighborhood is going to the dogs.
24.
lead a dog's life, to have an unhappy or harassed existence: He complains that he led a dog's life in the army.
25.
let sleeping dogs lie, to refrain from action that would alter an existing situation for fear of causing greater problems or complexities.
26.
put on the dog, Informal. to assume an attitude of wealth or importance; put on airs.
27.
throw to the dogs. throw ( def 57 ).
Origin:
before 1050; Middle English dogge, Old English docga

Related forms
dog·less, adjective
dog·like, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
Cite This Source Link To let sleeping dogs lie
Collins
World English Dictionary
dog (dɒɡ) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
—n
1.  a.  a domesticated canine mammal, Canis familiaris, occurring in many breeds that show a great variety in size and form
 b.  (as modifier): dog biscuit
2.  a.  any other carnivore of the family Canidae, such as the dingo and coyote
 b.  (as modifier): the dog family Related: canine
3.  a.  the male of animals of the dog family
 b.  (as modifier): a dog fox
4.  (modifier)
 a.  spurious, inferior, or useless: dog Latin
 b.  (in combination): dogberry
5.  a mechanical device for gripping or holding, esp one of the axial slots by which gear wheels or shafts are engaged to transmit torque
6.  informal a fellow; chap: you lucky dog
7.  informal a man or boy regarded as unpleasant, contemptible, or wretched
8.  informal (US) a male friend: used as a term of address
9.  slang an unattractive or boring girl or woman
10.  informal (US), (Canadian) something unsatisfactory or inferior
11.  short for firedog
12.  fogdog seadog See sundog any of various atmospheric phenomena
13.  a dog's chance no chance at all
14.  informal a dog's dinner, a dog's breakfast something that is messy or bungled
15.  a dog's life a wretched existence
16.  dog eat dog ruthless competition or self-interest
17.  informal like a dog's dinner dressed smartly or ostentatiously
18.  informal (US), (Canadian) put on the dog to behave or dress in an ostentatious or showy manner
 
—vb , dogs, dogging, dogged
19.  to pursue or follow after like a dog
20.  to trouble; plague: to be dogged by ill health
21.  to chase with a dog or dogs
22.  to grip, hold, or secure by a mechanical device
 
—adv
23.  ( usually in combination ) thoroughly; utterly: dog-tired
 
Related: canine
 
[Old English docga, of obscure origin]
 
'doglike
 
—adj

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

dog
O.E. docga, a late, rare word used of a powerful breed of canine. It forced out O.E. hund (the general Germanic and IE word; see canine) by 16c. and subsequently was picked up in many continental languages (cf. Fr. dogue, Dan. dogge), but the origin remains one of the great
mysteries of English etymology. Many expressions -- a dog's life (c.1600), go to the dogs (1610s), etc. -- reflect earlier hard use of the animals as hunting accessories, not pampered pets. In ancient times, "the dog" was the worst throw in dice (attested in Gk., L., and Skt., where the word for "the lucky player" was lit. "the dog-killer"), which plausibly explains the Gk. word for "danger," kindynas, which appears to be "play the dog." Slang meaning "ugly woman" is from 1930s; that of "sexually aggressive man" is from 1950s. Dog tag is from 1918. To dog-ear a book is from 1650s; dog-eared in extended sense of "worn, unkempt" is from 1894.
"Notwithstanding, as a dog hath a day, so may I perchance have time to declare it in deeds." [Queen Elizabeth, 1550]

"It is ill wakyng of a sleapyng dogge." [Heywood, 1562]
Phrase put on the dog "get dressed up" (1934) may refer back to the stiff stand-up shirt collars that in the 1890s were the height of male fashion (and were known as dog-collars at least from 1883), with reference to collars worn by dogs. The common Sp. word for "dog," perro, also is a mystery word of unknown origin, perhaps from Iberian.

dog
"to track like a dog," 1510s, see dog (n.).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Cultural Dictionary

Let sleeping dogs lie definition


Do not stir up a problem that has lain quiet for some time.

The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Slang Dictionary

dog definition


  1. n.
    a foot. (Usually plural.) : I gotta get home and soak my dogs.
  2. n.
    an ugly girl. (Rude and derogatory.) : I'm no dog, but I could wish for some changes.
  3. n.
    something undesirable or worthless; merchandise that no one wants to buy. : Put the dogs out on the sale table so people will see them.
  4. n.
    dog dung. (See also dog-doo.) : There's some dog on the lawn.
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
Cite This Source
Easton
Bible Dictionary

Dog definition


frequently mentioned both in the Old and New Testaments. Dogs were used by the Hebrews as a watch for their houses (Isa. 56:10), and for guarding their flocks (Job 30:1). There were also then as now troops of semi-wild dogs that wandered about devouring dead bodies and the offal of the streets (1 Kings 14:11; 16:4; 21:19, 23; 22:38; Ps. 59:6, 14). As the dog was an unclean animal, the terms "dog," "dog's head," "dead dog," were used as terms of reproach or of humiliation (1 Sam. 24:14; 2 Sam. 3:8; 9:8; 16:9). Paul calls false apostles "dogs" (Phil. 3:2). Those who are shut out of the kingdom of heaven are also so designated (Rev. 22:15). Persecutors are called "dogs" (Ps. 22:16). Hazael's words, "Thy servant which is but a dog" (2 Kings 8:13), are spoken in mock humility=impossible that one so contemptible as he should attain to such power.

Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary
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American Heritage
Idioms & Phrases

let sleeping dogs lie

Allow inactive problems to remain so, as in Jane knew she should report the accident but decided to let sleeping dogs lie. This injunction to avoid stirring up trouble was already a proverb in the 13th century. It alludes to waking up a fierce watchdog and has been stated in English since the late 1300s.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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