puppy dogn.
/ˈpʌpɪ ˌdɒɡ/, U.S. /ˈpəpi ˌdɑɡ/ 1. Chiefly nursery. A dog, esp. a small or young one. Cf. puppy n. 1a, 1b.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > mammals > group Unguiculata or clawed mammal > family Canidae > dog > [noun] > puppy
whelpc950
pup1542
puppy1567
pupsie?1576
puppy doga1616
whelplinga1618
puppet1652
dogling1830
a1616 W. Shakespeare King John (1623) ii. i. 461 Here's a large mouth..That..Talkes as familiarly of roaring Lyons, As maids of thirteene do of puppi-dogges . View more context for this quotation
1668 J. Dryden Secret-love iv What would you have me set still and look upon you like a little Puppy dog that's been taught to beg with his fore-leg up?
1702 S. Parker tr. Cicero Five Bks. De Finibus iv. 262 A Puppy-Dog, that's within a few Hours of the Age of Seeing, is as blind as another that's newly whelp'd.
1726 J. Swift Gulliver I. ii. i. 19 How mischievous all Children among us naturally are to Sparrows, Rabbits, young Kittens, and Puppy Dogs.
1839 Biblical Repertory Apr. 163 At Canton ‘the Stranger in China’ was accustomed to see exposed for sale in little baskets..cats, little puppy-dogs, and rats.
1875 B. Jowett tr. Plato Dialogues (ed. 2) III. 428 Like puppy-dogs, they delight to..pull at all who come near them.
1923 Times 25 June 6/6 The old boy's as pleased with himself as a puppy-dog with two tails.
1997 Pittsburgh Post-Gaz. (Nexis) 4 May c3 The hand-held video game features an animated image of a cute wittle puppy dog.
2. figurative. A meek, gentle, or naive person; a devotedly loyal or unquestioningly obedient person. Also: a sycophant or lackey. Cf. puppy n. 2a.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > emotion > humility > servility > [noun] > servile person
clienta1393
snivelard1398
a dog for (also to) the bowc1405
fawnerc1440
snivellerc1450
slave1521
footstool1531
minion1560
footman1567
cringer1582
earthworm1583
yea-sayer1584
croucher1587
creeper1589
sneak-up1598
spaniel1598
sneak-cupa1616
servile1632
puppy dog1651
clientelary1655
lackey1692
groveling1708
prostite1721
prostitute1721
toad-eater1742
groveller1779
cringeling1798
creeping Jesusc1818
toady1826
truckler1827
crawler1847
flunkey1854
doormat1861
dog robber1863
heeler1875
slaveling1884
bootlicker1890
fetch-and-carry1905
poodle1907
yes-woman1927
ass-licker1939
ass-kisser1951
chamcha1966
fart-catcher1971
the world > action or operation > behaviour > unaffectedness or naturalness > [noun] > artlessness, guilessness, or innocence > person
innocentc1386
innocencec1400
puppy dog1651
innocency1727
1651 T. Randolph et al. Hey for Honesty i. ii. 4/2 Why, what if you have not, you blinde Puppy-dog.
1691 T. D'Urfey Love for Money iv. iii. 47 But why is my dear Hony, little Puppy-Dog come before the hour?
1710 Fanatick Feast 12 At last he fell foul upon the Cynick Al—s, calling him, his pretty little puppy Dog.
1808 N. Bisbee Hist. Falcos iii. ii. 80 Good-morning, you little fawning, meeching, creeping, sneaking, stinking puppy-dog.
1912 E. Markham Real Amer. in Romance XI. 263 Know you not that he is the puppy dog of this black monster, Santa Anna, and used to fetch and carry for his wretched master.
1986 F. Peretti This Present Darkness xix. 182 Langstrat was his puppy dog.
2003 C. Berlinski Loose Lips v. 94 The man's a puppy dog... He's stuck to you like white on rice these days.
Compounds
C1. General attributive. Resembling or having the qualities of a puppy in some way; spec. (a) (of a facial expression, etc.) mournful, beseeching (cf. puppy-dog eyes n. at Compounds 2); (b) naive, energetic.
ΚΠ
1958 Kerrville (Texas) Times 6 May 8/3 This kid will look up at you with a puppy dog expression and shrug his shoulders.
1970 Frederick (Maryland) Post 14 July a10 He has that sad, puppy-dog face, as though he were waiting for someone to take his hand and help him to cross the street.
1977 Newsweek (Nexis) 31 Jan. 58 His biggest asset is his ingratiating way with celebrities—a sort of puppy-dog charm that both attracts clients and helps in promoting them.
1998 Jrnl. Early Republic 18 99 With puppy-dog enthusiasm.., I explained to him my aim to illuminate how Spanish justice functioned in colonial New Mexico.
2000 Mirror 10 Apr. 20 To the sound of classical guitar music and a puppy-dog expression, the world's richest man pleads for your sympathy.
C2. † puppy-dog water n. Obsolete = puppy-water n. at puppy n. Compounds 2.
puppy-dog eyes n. a person's eyes (and frequently hence expression or appearance generally), likened to a puppy's, esp. in appearing mournful, beseeching, or winsome, or in eliciting (or being intended to elicit) sympathy or compassion.
ΚΠ
1914 Hearst's Aug. 192/1 God has given me a squeaky voice, a despicable nose and little puppy-dog eyes, so what am I to do?
1946 Walla Walla (Washington) Union-Bull. 8 Feb. 4/5 He is a little fellow with a flat nose, puppy dog eyes, thick black eyebrows..and a great deal of personality.
1967 Oakland (Calif.) Tribune 5 Nov. (Entertainm. section) 3/1 The trim, non-tragic figure with large brown puppy-dog eyes.
1997 Cosmopolitan (U.K. ed.) May 140/2 You turn on the puppy-dog eyes and, whop, you're in.
2003 Mizz 13 Aug. 38/2 Ever flutter your eyelashes to get what you want? Nicola: ‘Definitely. Puppy-dog eyes go a long way.’
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > beautification > beautification of the person > beautification of the skin or complexion > [noun] > preparations for the skin or complexion > lotions and liquids > urine used as
puppy-dog water1652
puppy-water1687
1652 Mercurius Democritus No. 12. 93 Distilling young Puppies alive for Puppy-dog-Water to repaire the ruines of decayed faces.
1673 F. Kirkman Unlucky Citizen 124 She had a face as smug as if she had been used to wash it with Beef broath, or Puppy-dog Water.
1735 J. Miller Man of Taste i. i. 6 There's nothing in the whole House but Whites of Eggs, Puppy-dog Water, and a thousand other Slops.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2007; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
<
n.a1616