Slang dictionary
dog walk
[dog wawk]
What does dog walk mean?
Time to get the leash. The slang dog walk is “to overpower” or “outsmart” someone, as if in utter control of them, as when walking a dog. The slang verb own is a close synonym.
Where does dog walk come from?
When walking a dog, there’s a familiar routine: put the leash on, go outside, and let your doggo do their business. Sometimes you have to drag them along when they get stubborn. Or snap the leash back when they get unruly. This the essence of the slang dog walk, which a 2008 Urban Dictionary entry described as “total domination.”
In 2019, dog walk lit up the internet when rapper and celebrity Cardi B said she would dog walk conservative political commentator Tomi Lahren on social media.
The feud started in January 2019 when Lahren criticized Cardi for speaking out against the partial government shutdown instigated by President Trump over funding for his border wall–the longest such shutdown in US history. Lahren tweeted at Cardi: “Looks like @iamcardib is the latest genius political mind to endorse the Democrats. HA! Keep it up, guys! #MAGA2020.” But Cardi wasn’t having it, answering: “Leave me alone I will dog walk you.”
Leave me alone I will dog walk you . https://t.co/FjqIzpUbvp
— iamcardib (@iamcardib) January 20, 2019
Cardi B fans and other more liberal-minded tweeters dog-piled on Lahren, calling out some of her previous comments as bigoted and racist.
NGL Ming anxiously waiting on the Cardi B/Tomi Lahren dog walk vid.
— Ming Nethery (@MingGao26) January 22, 2019
My momma told me to dog walk racists pic.twitter.com/1AzgvrXBkk
— Luke Waltham (@lukewaltham) January 22, 2019
Examples of dog walk
Who uses dog walk?
Aside from when it refers to actually walking a cute puppers, dog walking is a considered a colorful, if fairly aggressive, threat or action.
Fights on Twitter:
“I’ll dog walk you if I ever see your ass in streets🖕🏼”In person : #Frenchie #Frenchbulldog #dogsoftwitter #doglovers #DogsAreBetterThanPeople pic.twitter.com/mmUSQlmykK
— 𝓐𝓭𝓮𝓵𝓪𝓲𝓭𝓪 𝓜𝓬𝓒𝓪𝓯𝓯𝓻𝓮𝔂 (@adellymccaffrey) February 16, 2019
Since Cardi B used it, the internet hasn’t been able to stop talking about it. The spat was closely followed that even the likes of Vanity Fair, Complex, and The Huffington Post chimed in. Social media posts took Cardi B’s dog walk line and applied it to a lot of frustrating scenarios.
You robocall my phone I will send malware to yours. Like @iamcardib said, "Leave me alone I will dog walk you."
— Kenneth Dall (@Fizzicyst) January 31, 2019
everyone:
me:
everyone:
me: leave me alone I will dog walk you— Yesika Salgado (@YesikaStarr) January 26, 2019
Dog walk went on to become popular political slang during the 2018–19 government shutdown, and it was notably used to describe the way Democratic Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, outmaneuvered Donald Trump to reopen the government.
So basically, Nancy Pelosi dog walked Trump.
— Eugene Gu, MD (@eugenegu) January 25, 2019
— m i t h (@ManInTheHoody) January 25, 2019
Note
This is not meant to be a formal definition of dog walk like most terms we define on Dictionary.com, but is rather an informal word summary that hopefully touches upon the key aspects of the meaning and usage of dog walk that will help our users expand their word mastery.