To see a man about a dog, horse or duck is an idiom, especially British English, of apology for one's imminent departure or absence, generally to euphemistically conceal one's true purpose, such as going to use the toilet or going to buy an alcoholic drink. The original non-facetious meaning was probably to place or settle a bet on a race, perhaps accompanied by a wink. In the UK the phrase is generally used nowadays as a polite way of saying, "I am going out [or "have been out"], but don't ask where", often with the facetious implication that you are about to be, or have been, up to no good. In the Southern US, going to see a man about a dog signifies that one is going to urinate, while going to see a man about a horse signifies that one is going to defecate, and thus may be away a bit longer. [1]
The earliest confirmed publication is the 1866 Dion Boucicault play Flying Scud,[2] in which a character knowingly breezes past a difficult situation saying, "Excuse me Mr. Quail, I can't stop; I've got to see a man about a dog."[3][4]Time magazine observed that the phrase was the play's "claim to fame".[5] In Newcastle upon Tyne, Newcastle Brown Ale commonly gained the nickname of "Dog" from the frequent use of the phrase to describe going to the pub.[6]
During Prohibition in the United States, the phrase was most commonly used in relation to the consumption or purchase of alcoholic beverages.[4]
The phrase entered into American usage when Cary Grant used it to escape an awkward social situation in the 1938 film Bringing Up Baby, an iconic screwball comedy that revolves around a lost pet leopard, Baby. Katharine Hepburn plays opposite Grant. Both were A-list actors whose influence on American culture were substantial. The entrance of this phrase into common American social may be traced to Grant. While initially not a great financial success,barely breaking even, the movie is now ranked as the best of its genre. It is not surprising, therefore, that the historical British phrase it introduced to the American moviegoing public has persisted in the American lexicon, in fact, becoming more popular in recent decades.
↑First performance Holborn Theatre Royal, London on October 6, 1866: The Times, 8 October 1866; p. 7; Issue 25623; col F. First U.S. production at Wallack's Theatre on April 24, 1867: The New York Times 25 April 1867
Farmer, J.S. and W.E. Henley. Slang and its Analogues. 1986.
Chapman, Robert L. Dictionary of American Slang. 1995.
Matthews, Mitford M. A Dictionary of Americanisms. 1951.
Spears, Richard A. Slang and Euphemism. 1981.
Spears, Richard A. The Slang and Jargon of Drugs and Drink. 1986.
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