Meaning of the dog ate my homework | Babel Free

Definitions

A stereotypical unconvincing excuse for not completing school homework or (by extension) not meeting one's obligations.

also, attributive

Examples

“Their reasons for missed deadlines are mostly of the "dog ate my homework variety" including such easily foreseeable events as yesterday's elections and that the badger culling policy is "difficult and sensitive".”

“The government's excuses for Diego Garcia's missing records are getting increasingly confused and desperate. Ministers could hardly be less credible if they simply said 'the dog ate my homework.'”

“Our immune system's weak; we've been sick as a dog, missing work and school, resorting to "the dog ate my homework" excuses amidst these frigid dog days of winter.”

CEFR level