try it on the dog

verb

To try something (especially a theatrical play) on a less important audience to gauge the likelihood of success before committing to general release or approval.

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Meanings

verbtry it on the dog (third-person singular simple present tries it on the dog, present participle trying it on the dog, simple past and past participle tried it on the dog)

present singular third person tries it on the dog · participle present trying it on the dog · participle past tried it on the dog · past tried it on the dog · alternative try it out on the dog

  1. colloquialTo try something (especially a theatrical play) on a less important audience to gauge the likelihood of success before committing to general release or approval.

    They had feared to make the venture with it at the California theatre in San Francisco where they had been favorites, so they brought it to Salt Lake to "try it on the dog."

    1905, John Shanks Lindsay, The Mormons and the Theatre, page 129

Synonyms & antonyms

Also see
try it out on the dog
Cite this entry
APA

try it on the dog. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/try%20it%20on%20the%20dog

MLA

“try it on the dog.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/try%20it%20on%20the%20dog. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “try it on the dog,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/try%20it%20on%20the%20dog.

Source: try it on the dog on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.