that dog won't hunt

== English == === Alternative forms === that dog don't hunt === Etymology === Apparently originating from the southern United States, the phrase may refer to a hunting dog that refuses to do its job. === Pronunciation === (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ðæt ˈdɒɡ wəʊnt ˈhʌnt/, /ðət-/ (General American) IPA(key): /ðæt ˈdɔɡ woʊnt ˈhʌnt/, /ðət-/ === Phrase === that dog won't hunt (US) That idea will not work; that is an inadequate explanation or proposition. [1965, Jesse Hill Ford, The Liberation of Lord Byron Jones, Boston, Mass.: Little, Brown and Company, OCLC 291992; republished as The Liberation of L. B. Jones (Signet Novel; Y4209), New York, N.Y.: New American Library, 1967, OCLC 29459320, page 41: "Calling her house help Mr. and Mrs. just won't get it! That old dog won't hunt," Oman had confided. / "I know, but let her discover it herself," Steve had said.] ==== Synonyms ==== that cock won't fight that old dog won't hunt that dog don't run === References ===