Idiom
Hair of the dog
The hair of the dog is an alcoholic drink someone has the morning after drinking too much, in the hope of easing a hangover.
How people use it
People usually say it in a joking way, as in "I need a little hair of the dog" or "He ordered a hair of the dog with breakfast." It is short for the longer "hair of the dog that bit you." The phrase is casual and a bit cheeky, so it fits chats with friends, not a doctor's office. Doctors point out that more alcohol does not cure a hangover; at best it puts off the symptoms for a while. The phrase has nothing to do with pets or real hair.
Also said: hair of the dog that bit you, a hair of the dog.
Examples
- After the wedding party, Uncle Ray joked that he needed a hair of the dog with his eggs.
- She ordered a hair of the dog at brunch, but her friend handed her a glass of water instead.
- Some people swear by the hair of the dog, but most doctors say rest and fluids work better.
Where it comes from
The full saying is "a hair of the dog that bit you." It comes from an old folk remedy: people once believed that if a dog bit you, putting a hair from that same dog on the wound would help it heal. The idea was that the thing that hurt you could also cure you. By the 1500s English writers were already using the phrase about drinking, and John Heywood's 1546 collection of proverbs includes it.
Check yourself
1. If a friend asks for a hair of the dog the morning after a party, what does he want?
Answer: A drink of alcohol to ease his hangover. The hair of the dog is a drink taken after a night of drinking, meant to soften a hangover.
2. Which sentence uses the idiom in its usual sense?
Answer: Feeling rough after the party, Leo poured himself a hair of the dog.. The idiom refers to an alcoholic drink after a night of heavy drinking, not to real hair or a gift.
Similar idioms
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