Word: dog Part of Speech: verb 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 one 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, it is not related to Mbabaram dog. Pronunciation: /dɒɡ/, /dɔɡ/, /dɑɡ/, [dɔ(ː)ɡ] 1. To pursue with the intent to catch. Labels: transitive 2. To follow in an annoying or harassing way. Labels: transitive Example: The woman cursed him so that trouble would dog his every step. Example: […] they were discovered in a very improper manner by the husband of the gypsy, who, from jealousy it seems, had kept a watchful eye over his wife, and had dogged her to the place, where he found her in the arms of her gallant. 3. To fasten a hatch securely. Labels: transitive Example: It is very important to dog down these hatches. 4. To watch, or participate, in sexual activity in a public place. Labels: intransitive Example: I admit that I like to dog at my local country park. Example: Lightning [is a] burst of charged particles that lights up the sky and allows onlookers to see who's dogging in the bushes without using a flashlight. 5. To intentionally restrict one's productivity as employee; to work at the slowest rate that goes unpunished. Labels: intransitive, transitive Example: A surprise inspection of the night shift found that some workers were dogging it. 6. To criticize. Labels: slang, transitive Example: Harmon Rabb (David James Elliott): Are you dogging Harm's special meatless meatloaf? Sarah MacKenzie (Catherine Bell): Let's put it this way. If you were to make the Harmon Special on this ship, they'd have to unload it with the toxic waste. 7. To divide (a watch) with a comrade. Labels: transitive Example: A. We never stood 4 to 8 p.m. watches, sir. We dogged our watches. Q. I suppose that is 6 to 8 p.m., then; it is a little indistinct. I mean the second dog watch. Example: Meanwhile, we dogged the watch sections so that both halves of the crew could fetch full sea bags of uniforms and gear […]