In a testament to how meaningful canines are to humans, the English language has been heavily influenced by these beloved animals. Check out some of these famous phrases:
• Raining cats & dogs: The origin of this is cloudy at best, but some point to usage as early as the 17th century when a heavy downpour could be as violent as a fight between a cat and dog. Others insist that this phrase refers to witches who rode in storms in the shape of cats, and to dogs that attended Thor—the god of thunder, lightning and storms.
• Bulldog edition: This term has been around since the early 1900s, and was used in journalism to denote early editions of newspapers. Some believe that the bulldogs’ tenacity and ferocity was similar to reporters, and to editors wanting to grab readers’ attention with carefully worded headlines.
• Sick as a dog: This 17th c saying referred to when dogs roamed the streets unloved and in poor health.” This later evolved to “having a problem to solve” and keeping at it, much like a dog gnawing on a bone for a long time.
• Gone to the dogs: There are two possible origins for this: greyhound racing, where people lost their entire paycheck on one bet OR when dogs were first domesticated and ate leftover food scraps from their owners.
• Sick as a dog: This 17th century saying referred to when dogs roamed the streets unloved and in poor health.
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