Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

salty dog

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.72 in modern English

Syllables: salty -dog
IPA

13

Scrabble Score

8

Letters

2

Syllables

8

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

An experienced sailor.

American usage

noun

A sexually promiscuous man; a male sexual partner.

American usage; Dated; Slang

noun

A cocktail consisting of gin or vodka, grapefruit juice, and a salt rim.

Example Sentences

"But I felt frustrated after all that running around in traffic. What I had to show for it: a well-grilled salmon steak, a salty dog mixed stronger than riot punch, and a plane trip that never happened."

Etymology

From the salt of the sea. Compare old salt and seadog. Sexual sense may be due to association of sailors with sexual promiscuity, or may be separate development, salty (“spicy”) and dog both suggesting promiscuity.

Usage

American usage
Dated
Slang

Inflected Forms

salty dogs (plural)

Phrases

old salt sea dog

Frequently Paired Words

old salt salty sea dog

Synonyms

old salt sea dog benedick cad drabber fuck boy fuck-boy fuckboy gallant goat he-bitch himbo

Questions

What does salty dog mean?: An experienced sailor.
Where does salty dog come from?: From the salt of the sea. Compare old salt and seadog. Sexual sense may be due to association of sailors with sexual promiscuity, or may be separate development, salty (“spicy”) and dog both suggesting promiscuity.

How to pronounce salty dog

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