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dog in the manger

 
Dictionary: dog in the manger

n., pl., dogs in the manger.
One who prevents others from enjoying what one has no use for oneself.

[From a fable in which a dog prevented an ox from eating hay he did not want himself.]


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Idioms: dog in the manger
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One who prevents others from enjoying something despite having no use for it. For example, Why be a dog in the manger? If you aren't going to use those tickets, let someone else have them. This expression alludes to Aesop's fable about a snarling dog that prevents horses from eating fodder that is unpalatable to the dog itself. [Mid-1500s]


WordNet: dog in the manger
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Note: click on a word meaning below to see its connections and related words.

The noun has one meaning:

Meaning #1: someone who prevents you from enjoying something that they themselves have no need for


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Copyrights:

Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
Idioms. The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
WordNet. WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.  Read more