dog-whistling

9.9

A way of saying things that hides a message for a certain group

noun
/ˈdɔɡˌwɪslɪŋ/

Literature

: mensaje en clave

That's really like dog whistling the conspiracists so hard these days.

It's all wolf, you know, it's all dog whistles, dog whistles, not wolf whistles.

Examples

It's weird—there just seem to be trigger words for lots of people, and it's entirely possible that Powell is "dog-whistling" there and I am missing it (it would not be the first time).

Blog text (19)
I now realize she was dog-whistling to the other medical professionals that something was not right.

Blog text (14)
This is just dog-whistling for guns and militarism.

Blog text (20)
The politician's speech was full of dog-whistling, targeting specific groups without making it obvious to everyone.
During the debate, she was accused of dog-whistling to her supporters about controversial issues.
Many believe that his comments were dog-whistling, intended to provoke a certain response from his audience.

Synonyms

dog whistle

vsdog-whistling

Literature

8.7

A phrase that sends a hidden message about politics to a certain group

is the action of giving such hidden messages rather than the message itself

How Explicit

explicitness

1 6.4

innuendo

NSFW

43 8.0

hint

229 1.5

dog-whistling

Literature

9.9

secret code

3 5.2

Surface Forms

dog-whistling singular

dog-whistlings plural

Morphology

dog-whistling = dog-whistle (semi-transparent) = dog + whistle + ing

The formation from the verb 'dog-whistle' to 'dog-whistling' is a regular gerundive/nominalizing -ing suffix and thus straightforward.

Etymology

Dog-whistling comes from the small tool called a dog whistle that makes a sound 'only dogs can hear'. People started using that picture for speech that has a 'hidden meaning' meant to be understood only by a certain group. So, to dog-whistle is to say something that sounds normal to most people but sends a secret message to some listeners.