Word.ws English Dictionary

fit as a butcher's dog

fit as a butcher's dog adjective: very fit; in good shape.

Adjective

fit as a butcher's dog (not comparable)

  1. (UK) Very fit; in good shape.
    • This time not only is Gooch as fit as a butcher's dog but England, through their efforts at Headingley and Lord's, are mentally attuned to the process of both winning and, crucially in the second match, not losing.1991 July 4, Mike Selvey, The Guardian, "Cricket: England out to make it seventh time lucky"
    • In my eyes, Nick Nairn is still in his early 20s, invincible and as fit as a butcher's dog.2000 April 16, Nick Nairn, “Sunday Herald”, in Food for Thought

Origin of fit as a butcher's dog

Based on the assumption that a butcher's dog is likely to be well fed because of the ready supply of its master's meat.

Questions about fit as a butcher's dog

What does fit as a butcher's dog mean?
Fit as a butcher's dog means very fit; in good shape.
What part of speech is fit as a butcher's dog?
Fit as a butcher's dog is an adjective.

Words near fit as a butcher's dog in the dictionary

  1. fistulæ
  2. fistwise
  3. fisty
  4. fit
  5. fit and finish
  6. fit as a butcher's dog
  7. fit as a fiddle
  8. fit as a flea
  9. fit as a lop
  10. fit as a Mallee bull
  11. fit as fiddles

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: fit as a butcher's dog (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: En-au-fit as a butcher's dog.ogg.

Cite this entry: “fit as a butcher's dog.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/fit_as_a_butcher%27s_dog. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.