Screwed The Pooch

Meaning

What does Screwed The Pooch mean?

To screw the pooch is a slang expression for making an enormous and embarrassing mistake.

Origin

What's the origin of Screwed The Pooch?

The phrase was used as “f*** the dog” in the 1930’s and at the time it meant wasting time or being lazy.

By the 1960’s, the meaning of “f*** the dog” turned into making a mistake.

It is a radio DJ, Jack May (also known as Candied Yam Jackson) who claimed to have turned “fuck the dog” into “screw the pooch” during the 1950’s.

Spread & Usage

How did Screwed The Pooch spread?

“Screw the pooch” was popularized thanks to Tom Wolfe’s book, and its film adaptation; The Right Stuff, which was based upon the Mercury Seven space program, launched in the 1960’s.

The expression was first defined on Urban Dictionary in 2003.

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