an ultrasonic whistle, audible to dogs and some other animals but out of the range easily perceptible to the human ear, used by handlers of working dogs and by dog trainers.
Chiefly Politics. a choice of words, coded communication, or other symbolic aspect of self-presentation that is superficially unobjectionable or neutral but conveys a secondary message aimed at those who affiliate with a controversial group or fringe ideology, usually signaling one’s own affinity for such beliefs: The logo on the t-shirt he chose to wear in his profile pic is a neo-Nazi dog whistle.
The candidate used “welfare reform” as a dog whistle appealing to racist voters.
The logo on the t-shirt he chose to wear in his profile pic is a neo-Nazi dog whistle.
What does dog whistle mean? A dog whistle is a political term about statements that appear innocent to the general public but they actually use subtle, coded language to communicate a secondary message to an intended group. The messages are often racial or bigoted in nature, used to attract certain voters and energize them to vote.
First recorded in 1800–05
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Judges know the difference between a whistleblower and a dog whistle.
From Salon ● Jul. 17, 2025
Powell responded "oh, we want to blow that little trumpet now do we" and "let's get that dog whistle out shall we".
From BBC ● May 3, 2025
“It was all an intimidation method to send a dog whistle to Black people straight form Beverly Hills, straight from City Hall,” Crump said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 13, 2023
On Friday’s episode of What Next: TBD, I spoke with Katelyn Jetelina, an epidemiologist and data scientist, about the rise of the viral dog whistle “died suddenly.”
From Slate ● Jan. 23, 2023
It was like a dog whistle, the pitch tuned perfectly so only our freak brains could pick it up and process it.
From "The Darkest Minds" by Alexandra Bracken
“That’s dog-whistle stuff, man, in a city like Memphis,” said Josh Spickler, a former public defender and the executive director of Just City, a local criminal justice reform group.
From New York Times ● Feb. 3, 2023
While I’m pretty sure Graham wouldn’t consciously encourage a riot, I’m not so sure he wouldn’t dog-whistle a little tune that would be likely to perk up some ears.
From Washington Post ● Sep. 2, 2022
Sometimes, "unicorn" is simply a dog-whistle for cotton candy.
From Salon ● Jul. 12, 2022
The highly visually literate modern fashion consumer is attuned to such subtleties, which is precisely why the dog-whistle crassness of Victoria’s Secret feels so out of step with our times.
From The Guardian ● Feb. 14, 2019
"Master Babington saith it is a dog-whistle which he was leaving in charge with Cis to exchange for another with Huckstress Tibbott," she answered.
From Unknown to History: a story of the captivity of Mary of Scotland by Yonge, Charlotte Mary
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
