hair of the dog

the hair of the dog (that bit you)

An alcoholic drink consumed to remedy a hangover. The phrase comes from the notion that literally rubbing the hair of the dog that bit you on the wound would help it to heal. Wow, I feel terrible this morning. The only cure is the hair of the dog, I guess!See also: bit, dog, hair, of

hair of the dog

a small quantity of alcohol taken as a remedy for a hangover. informal The full form of this phrase is hair of the dog that bit you . Hair from a rabid dog was at one time thought to be a remedy against the effects of its bite; in this expression, the recommended cure for a hangover is a small amount of the cause of the problem. 1987 Bruce Allen Powe The Ice Eaters Murray, still feeling the effects of the previous evening, had suggested they go into a bar because he needed a hair of the dog. See also: dog, hair, of

the hair of the ˈdog (that ˈbit you)

(informal) an alcoholic drink taken in the morning in order to help cure the unpleasant effects of drinking too much alcohol the night before: ‘Why are you drinking whisky at 8 o’clock in the morning?’ ‘Hair of the dog. I’ve got the most terrible hangover.’In the past, if a person was bitten by a dog, burnt hair from the same dog was used as a protection against infection.See also: dog, hair, of

hair of the dog

A small amount of what made one ill might be used as a remedy; recipe for curing a hangover. This expression appeared in John Heywood’s Proverbs of 1546 (“I pray thee let me and my fellow have a haire of the dog that bit us last night”) and alludes to the even older folk remedy of treating a dog bite by placing the burnt hair of a dog on the wound. Although having a drink is a dubious cure for the aftereffects of alcoholic overindulgence, the expression is still used, and occasionally is transferred to other matters.See also: dog, hair, of

hair of the dog

hair of the dog

hair of the dog

the hair of the dog (that bit you)

hair of the dog

the hair of the ˈdog (that ˈbit you)

hair of the dog

hair of the dog

Words related to hair of the dog

noun an alcoholic drink supposed to cure a hangover

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