What it means
A dog's dinner means a proper mess. You use it when something looks all over the place or when someone’s botched a job so badly it needs doing again. If you’ve made a dog's dinner of it, you’ve really cocked it up. Dressed up like a dog's dinner means someone’s gone too far with the outfit and looks fussy, overdone, and a bit daft.
Usage examples
"Tried to tile the bathroom myself and made a dog's dinner of it, wonky rows, grout everywhere, and the missus fuming."
"The new lad in dispatch made a right dog's dinner of the morning orders, half the labels swapped, two parcels gone to the wrong county."
"Look at the state of this kitchen, an absolute dog's dinner, who let the kids loose with the flour and walked off?"
"I only asked him to put the shelf up and he’s made a dog's dinner of it, screws sticking out and the whole thing leaning like it’s had six pints."
"She turned up to the pub in feathers, sparkles, and heels the height of table legs, dressed up like a dog's dinner for a Tuesday night."
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Where it comes from
This is an old British expression. It comes from the idea of a dog’s meal looking like a random, sloppy heap rather than anything neat or presentable. By the 20th century it was being used for anything badly done or visually chaotic, and later also for someone dressed in an over-the-top, messy way.
Other ways to say it
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