not enough to hang a dog on

phrase

Of evidence, not strong or compelling; being very little or insubstantial evidence.

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Meanings

phrase
  1. idiomaticOf evidence, not strong or compelling; being very little or insubstantial evidence.

    "So there we were, and probably you'll agree with me that all the evidence, so far, was less than you'd hang a dog on."

    1933, James Hilton, Lost Horizon, published 1973, page 62
    1 more example

    If the evidence had been given at once, I should have said that it looked bad, perhaps, but was not enough to hang a dog on. But after five years of bitter faction?

    1899, G.W. Steevens, The Tragedy of Dreyfus, page 89
Cite this entry
APA

not enough to hang a dog on. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/not%20enough%20to%20hang%20a%20dog%20on

MLA

“not enough to hang a dog on.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/not%20enough%20to%20hang%20a%20dog%20on. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “not enough to hang a dog on,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/not%20enough%20to%20hang%20a%20dog%20on.

Source: not enough to hang a dog on on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.