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fogdog love

fogdog

Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A bright or clear spot that appears in breaking fog.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun a ray of light seen amidst fog

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[From the fact that it accompanies fog as a dog accompanies its owner.]

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  • vendingmachine commented on the word fogdog

    Odd etymology.

    July 29, 2021

  • ry commented on the word fogdog

    the fact, huh?

    July 29, 2021

  • bilby commented on the word fogdog


    July 29, 2021

  • bilby commented on the word fogdog

    Rubbish etymology methinks. Far more likely by imitation of sundog.

    Note that Oxford dictionary lists second meaning of fogdog as 'The part of a rainbow which meets the horizon'.

    And sundog via the CID is 'A fragmentary rainbow; a small rainbow near the horizon; -- called also dog and weathergaw'.

    July 29, 2021

  • bilby commented on the word fogdog

    Meanwhile this note on Wikipedia on the etymology of sundog is worth consideration:

    "In Abram Palmer's 1882 book Folk-etymology: A Dictionary of Verbal Corruptions Or Words Perverted in Form Or Meaning, by False Derivation Or Mistaken Analogy, sun-dogs are defined:

    The phenomena of false suns which sometimes attend or dog the true when seen through the mist (parhelions). In Norfolk a sun-dog is a light spot near the sun, and water-dogs are the light watery clouds; dog here is no doubt the same word as dag, dew or mist as 'a little dag of rain' (Philolog. Soc. Trans. 1855, p. 80). Cf. Icel. dogg, Dan. and Swed. dug = Eng. 'dew'."

    July 29, 2021