Phrase guide

dog days

noun · 4 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • Received-Pronunciation: /ˈdɒɡ deɪz/
  • General-American: /ˈdɔɡ deɪz/
  • Australia: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.

1

noun

Meaning 1

The days following the heliacal rising of Sirius, now in early August (Gregorian) at dates varying by latitude.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: archaic, plural, plural-normally

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: canicular days

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

The unpleasantly hot days of late summer.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: plural, plural-normally

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

Any similar period of inactivity, laziness, or stagnation.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: plural, plural-normally

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

noun

Meaning 4

the hot period between early July and early September; a period of inactivity

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: canicule, canicular days

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: time period, period of time, period

History

Etymology

Calque of Latin diēs caniculārēs (“puppy days”), a calque of Ancient Greek κυνάδες ἡμέραι (kunádes hēmérai, “dog days”), from κυνάς (kunás, “of or related to dogs”), from Κῠ́ων (Kŭ́ōn, “the Dog”) in reference to the star Sirius, which appears in Homeric Greek as "Orion's dog". The return of Sirius to the night sky (its heliacal rising), occurring in antiquity around July 25 (Athens) or 29 (Rome), was considered by the Greeks and Romans to herald what were considered the hottest, least healthy, and least lucky days of summer.

Across languages

Translations

47 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Arabic: أَيَّام الشِّعْرَى (ʔayyām aš-šiʕrā) — the days between early July and early September
  • Arabic: الخَمَاسِين (al-ḵamāsīn) — the days between early July and early September
  • Aramaic: ܟܠܒܐ — the days between early July and early September
  • Bulgarian: горещници (goreštnici) — the days between early July and early September
  • Catalan: canícula — the days between early July and early September
  • Chinese Mandarin: 三伏 (sānfú) — the days between early July and early September
  • Danish: hundedage — the days between early July and early September
  • Dutch: hondsdagen — the days between early July and early September
  • Faroese: hundadagar — the days between early July and early September
  • Finnish: mätäkuu — the days between early July and early September
  • French: canicule — the days between early July and early September
  • German: Hundstage — the days between early July and early September
  • Irish: laethe madrúla — the days between early July and early September
  • Italian: canicola — the days between early July and early September
  • Italian: solleone — the days between early July and early September
  • Japanese: 真夏 (manatsu) — the days between early July and early September
  • Korean: 삼복 (sambok) — the days between early July and early September
  • Norwegian Bokmål: hundedager — the days between early July and early September
  • Persian: روزهای سگی (ruzhāye sagi) — the days between early July and early September
  • Polish: kanikuła — the days between early July and early September
  • Portuguese: Canícula — the days between early July and early September
  • Romanian: caniculă — the days between early July and early September
  • Russian: мёртвый сезо́н (mjórtvyj sezón) — the days between early July and early September
  • Russian: зно́йные ле́тние дни (znójnyje létnije dni) — the days between early July and early September
  • Spanish: canícula — the days between early July and early September
  • Swedish: rötmånad — the days between early July and early September
  • Turkish: eyyamıbahur — the days between early July and early September
  • Arabic: سَمَائِم (samāʔim) — unpleasantly hot days
  • Bulgarian: горещници (goreštnici) — unpleasantly hot days
  • Catalan: canícula — unpleasantly hot days
  • Chinese Mandarin: 三伏天 (sānfútiān) — unpleasantly hot days
  • Chinese Mandarin: 大热天 — unpleasantly hot days
  • French: canicule — unpleasantly hot days
  • Georgian: პაპანაქება (ṗaṗanakeba) — unpleasantly hot days
  • Georgian: ყველაზე ცხელი დღეები (q̇velaze cxeli dɣeebi) — unpleasantly hot days
  • Georgian: ზაფხულის ცხელი სეზონი (zapxulis cxeli sezoni) — unpleasantly hot days
  • Greek: κυνικά καύματα (kyniká kávmata) — unpleasantly hot days
  • Hungarian: kánikula — unpleasantly hot days
  • Italian: solleone — unpleasantly hot days
  • Polish: kanikuła — unpleasantly hot days
  • Portuguese: canícula — unpleasantly hot days
  • Romanian: caniculă — unpleasantly hot days
  • Romanian: arșiță — unpleasantly hot days
  • Spanish: canícula — unpleasantly hot days
  • Finnish: kissanpäivät — period of inactivity, laziness or stagnation
  • Polish: martwy sezon — period of inactivity, laziness or stagnation
  • Russian: мёртвый сезо́н (mjórtvyj sezón) — period of inactivity, laziness or stagnation