sick as a dog

Idioms and Phrases

Very ill, especially from a stomach malady. For example, I don't know what was in that stew but I was sick as a dog all night . This simile was first recorded in 1705. Why a dog should be viewed as particularly sick remains unclear.

Example Sentences

She notes, "For me, if I have the absolute worst day or I'm sick as a dog — as the expression goes — the thing that makes me feel best is to go home and literally climb into bed under a blanket with my dog."

From Salon

Some people might still think they’ll be seen as a hero for working despite being “sick as a dog,” thinking it’ll show “how tough I am,” Tuckson said.

From Los Angeles Times

“You have your child who is sick as a dog, you have no hope, you find CBD hemp, non-impairing, non-intoxicating,” Goldstein said.

From Los Angeles Times

Sitting in a car outside her old post office, she says: "I could have been still there now, still working, instead of being in this state all the time, and I just feel sick as a dog, stomach's going, and terrified because I see many of my own customers, you know."

From BBC

“You can’t sit home,” he said in Indianola, adding jokingly, “If you’re sick as a dog … even if you vote and then pass away, it’s worth it.”

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• anxious
• fidgety
• groggy
• restless
• sickly
• squeamish
• uncomfortable
• uneasy