dog in the manger

noun

Etymology

From a Greek fable about a dog preventing other animals from eating the hay in a manger, even though as a carnivore it could not eat the hay itself. Although the story was ascribed to Aesop's Fables in the 15th century, no ancient source does so. The phrase first appears in the writings of Diogenianus.

Definitions

  1. Someone who denies to others something that the denier cannot use.

    • No adjective is strong enough for characterizing this wicked dog-in-the-manger policy. From various sources I hear tales of such wanton destruction of nations' property in all parts of India.

The neighborhood

Vish — recursive loop

No curated loop yet for dog in the manger. Loops are being traced one word at a time while the ingestion pipeline matures.

sense glosses and etymology drawn from English Wiktionary · source · CC-BY-SA