dog Latin

American  

noun

1. mongrel or spurious Latin.

2. a jargon imitating Latin.

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dog Latin British  

noun

1. spurious or incorrect Latin

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Etymology

Origin of dog Latin

First recorded in 1760–70

Example Sentences

It was in the same vein as his "Arabian Nights," and contained much curious comment upon many things that we Anglo Saxons do not talk about, save in medical society meetings, and dog Latin.

From Brann the Iconoclast — Volume 10 by Brann, William Cowper

It's wonderful how well this jolly dog gets on, with his dogmas and dog Latin together.

From Punchinello, Volume 1, No. 04, April 23, 1870 by Various

Excellent dog Latin," said Jacques; "and literally translated it signifies: 'Gold from the Governor, Tobacco from the South Side, Asinarian strategy Has brought into his chambers.'

From The Youth of Jefferson A Chronicle of College Scrapes at Williamsburg, in Virginia, A.D. 1764 by Anonymous

The scribe of the Hittite king produced only a species of dog Latin, while the scribe of the king of Alashia trots out his whole vocabulary unhampered by grammar.

From The Tell El Amarna Period by Hutchison, J. (Jane)

His precise, curial style was easily victorious over the Jesuit's dog Latin, and his expressive German, with his pithy Lutheranisms, was more than a match for the general's Platt-Deutsch dialect.

From Pretty Michal by Jókai, Mór