Meanings
present singular third person sees a man about a dog · participle present seeing a man about a dog · past saw a man about a dog · participle past seen a man about a dog
- datedidiomaticUsed in place of a real explanation when excusing oneself for a short period of time, particularly (euphemistic) to use the toilet or (historical) drink alcohol.
I'll be right back, but I've got to go to see a man about a dog.
1 more example
“I’m running up tonight and on to York in the morning. I expect to get back on Thursday.” ”York?” ”Yes; I want to see a man there—about a dog, and all that.”
1935, Dorothy L. Sayers, Gaudy NightSynonyms: a man, a man about a horse, a man about the plumbing, use the toilet, urinate, and Thesaurus:defecate
Synonyms & antonyms
verbUsed in place of a real explanation when excusing oneself for a short period of time, particularly (euphemistic) to use the toilet or (historical) drink alcohol.
Origin
Unknown. As a Prohibition-era reference to getting alcohol, influenced by the expression hair of the dog.
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
see a man about a dog. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/see%20a%20man%20about%20a%20dog
“see a man about a dog.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/see%20a%20man%20about%20a%20dog. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “see a man about a dog,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/see%20a%20man%20about%20a%20dog.
Source: see a man about a dog on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.