dog
- noun
- /dɔg/
- Specialized
- To secure the lid, he used a dog that fitted perfectly into the notch of the mechanism.
Examples
-
Adjusting the dog on the machine allowed for smoother operation and prevented any backward movement.
-
The engineer installed a new dog to ensure the wheel would only turn in one direction.
-
You gotta fix this dog door.
-
There was a metal dog box in the truck bed.
Fiction book (2001) -
The dog catcher's in there.
-
Do you have any idea how good a chili cheese dog is?
-
A dog latch locking mechanism used in this company's connectors has been designed to assure a positive mechanical lock.
Academic text (1994)
Synonyms
A device that holds or locks something closed
A small catch in a ratchet that keeps a wheel from moving back
A small piece that holds a part in a notch and makes a click
A small metal lever that fits into a gear notch to stop backward movement and let forward movement
Idioms
- Literature
Make people focus on something less important to hide a bigger problem
- Offensive
A person who stops others from using something they neither want nor need
- Jargon
Use a company's own products to show they work and learn from them
- Informal
A person who finally gets what they wanted but does not know what to do next
- Informal
A person who suddenly succeeds and then does not know what to do next
- Informal
A playful phrase that says another person or pet is welcome too
- Archaic
To not have enough evidence to prove someone is guilty or to take action
- Archaic
To keep trying until everything is finished no matter how long it takes
- Informal
Test something first with a small group before using it more widely
- Informal
To keep supporting something until the very end, no matter how long it takes
Compounds
A dog trained to protect people or property by warning and sometimes attacking intruders
A large, intelligent dog that works in police teams or guides blind people
- US
A small animal that digs tunnels and lives in large groups on North American grasslands
A small group of stars in the northern sky east of Orion that contains the bright star Procyon
A simple swimming stroke with arms and legs moving one after the other like a dog swims
- Jargon
A product a company uses inside to test and find problems before public release
A large Swiss working dog with long black, brown, and white fur that is gentle and loyal
A small squirrel-like animal that lives underground in groups and has a black-tipped tail
- South African
A large wild dog from southern and eastern Africa that hunts in packs
- Archaic
A large white dog with black or brown spots that used to run beside carriages
How Secure
Surface Forms
Etymology
Dog for a mechanical catch comes from the idea of a dog that 'holds' or grips something. That's why a machine 'dog' bites into a wheel to stop or hold it in place.