Where "Dog's breakfast" Comes From
First recorded in the 1920s in British and Australian military slang, the expression isn't uniquely Australian, but it took deep root in Australian vernacular. It paints an unforgettably vivid picture of an unappetizing mishmash of dinner scraps and leftovers tossed haphazardly together into a dog's feeding bowl!
"The report was a dog's breakfast, so I had to rewrite it."
How Aussies Actually Use It
A dog's breakfast is a mess. You can use it for a disorganised room, a badly planned event or a piece of work that has gone wrong.
A common version is "make a dog's breakfast of it", meaning to handle something very badly. It is blunt but not rude, so it works in most casual situations.
See also: Shonky (unreliable, dubious quality), Dodgy (suspicious, unreliable, poor quality).
Say It Like an Aussie
Say it: DOGZ BREK-fust.
In conversation:
- The room was a dog’s breakfast after the party.
- Don’t hand in that dog’s breakfast of a report.
- The seating plan is a dog’s breakfast.
Good to know: It works for any kind of mess, and it’s an easy way to call something chaotic without being harsh.
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