Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

in the doghouse

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.57 in modern English

Syllables: in- the -dog-house
IPA

21

Scrabble Score

13

Letters

4

Syllables

10

Unique Chars

Meaning

prep_phrase

In a situation of being the object of someone's anger or disapproval, especially one's spouse.

Informal

Example Sentences

"I had a mighty interesting visitor. It was the Crown Prince of Germany's son. […] He is a mighty likable young fellow, about 26 years old, the second son, but the oldest one married outside the thoroughbred pasture and now he is in the doghouse as far as any succession is concerned."
"Nick was deep in the doghouse with Louella after three days of persistent phone calls and his final less-than-tactful message."
"He forgets his anniversary, he's in the doghouse, but he pulls out of it with a romantic (i.e. expensive) dinner."

Usage

Informal

Synonyms

doghoused in hot water in someone's bad books in the dogbox

Questions

What does in the doghouse mean?: In a situation of being the object of someone's anger or disapproval, especially one's spouse.

How to pronounce in the doghouse

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “in the doghouse”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling () so you know which sounds to aim for.
Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “in the doghouse”.
Repeat and practice — Say “in the doghouse” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.