dog days
plural noun
Did you know?
Idle hands may be the devil’s workshop, but let’s be serious: when it’s stiflingly hot outside, who among us isn’t tempted to shirk work to go lie doggo in the shade somewhere? Such is the desire of many a creature—not just dogs (or lexicographers)—during the dog days of summer. If you’re curious how dogs got singled out in this expression, however, you might say it was in the stars. The dog in dog days is the Dog Star, aka Sirius, the star that represents the hound of the hunter Orion in the eponymous constellation. The star has long been associated with sultry weather in the northern hemisphere because it rises simultaneously with the sun during the hottest days of summer.
Examples of dog days in a Sentence
Liam Hess, Vogue, 21 Nov. 2024
After the dog days of summer, the holiday offers a three-day weekend before students and workers generally resume their five-day weekly schedules.
—Alexis Simmerman, Austin American-Statesman, 29 Aug. 2024
Sign Up For most, The Basketball Tournament is an annual summer sideshow, a bunch of college alumni teams competing for a $1 million prize while creating television inventory in the dog days of the sports calendar.
—Kyle Tucker, The Athletic, 29 Aug. 2024
Her research revealed that the dog days are 40 days around the rise of the star constellation, Sirius (known as the dog star).
—Sabrina Weiss, Peoplemag, 12 Aug. 2024
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Dictionary Entries Near dog days
Cite this Entry
“Dog days.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dog%20days. Accessed 28 Nov. 2024.
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