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Glite Dictionary
pie-dog

pie-dog

9.9
A dog with no owner that lives near villages, often in India
  • noun
  • Archaic
translation icon : perro callejero
  • The pie-dog wandered through the village looking for food.

Examples

  • He threw a stick towards a pie-dog that was rummaging near the market stalls.

  • The pie-dogs are a common sight in many Indian towns, living off what they can find.

  • At dusk, a lonely pie-dog wandered through the dusty lanes searching for scraps.

  • I saw a pie-dog chasing a squirrel yesterday.

  • At dusk, a lonely pie-dog wandered through the dusty lanes searching for scraps.

  • He threw a stick towards a pie-dog that was rummaging near the market stalls.

  • The pie-dogs are a common sight in many Indian towns, living off what they can find.

Synonyms

pye-dog
vspie-dog
  • Archaic
9.9

A dog with no owner that lives near people often in villages

is the modern spelling referring to the same ownerless half wild village dog
pariah dog
vspie-dog
  • UK
9.0

A partly wild dog with no owner that lives and roams in villages, often in Asia

is more often half wild and specifically called a mongrel in local usage

Surface Forms

pie-dog singular
pie-dogs plural

Etymology

Pie-dog is Indian English for an 'ownerless' mixed-breed dog often seen in towns; a helpful way to remember it is to break it into pie + dog and picture a stray living on leftover food like a pie. So, pie-dog simply means a street dog that scavenges for scraps, which fits its modern use for half-wild village dogs.