Siccing
/ˈsɪkɪŋ/
verbB2present participle
Definition
"Siccing" is the action of telling a dog or an animal to go after or attack a person or another animal. It often means making the animal aggressive or ready to chase. People use this word when they want their dog to protect or scare someone.
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See It in Action
To order a dog or animal to attack or chase
- •The owner sicced his dog on the intruder.
- •She sicced her guard dog when she saw the stranger.
- •The police sicced the dog to catch the suspect.
To encourage or send someone to attack or confront aggressively (less common, figurative)
- •He sicced his friends on the bully.
- •The manager sicced the team on the problem quickly.
Make It Stick
- ✓Think of "siccing" like "telling" a dog, but specifically to attack or chase something.
- ✓Picture a dog suddenly running fast after a stranger because its owner said "sic!"
- ✓It's the feeling of warning or protecting, like when you want your dog to guard your home.
- ✓Sounds like "sick-ing" → imagine a dog acting "sick" angry and ready to run after someone.
- ✓In cartoons, when a character says "sic 'em!" to their dog, it means "go chase!"
- ✓NOT like "petting" (gentle touch), "siccing" is active and aggressive.
- ✓NOT like "calling" a dog to come, "siccing" is sending it away to attack or chase.
- ✓NOT like "training" (teaching good behavior), "siccing" is ordering a specific action to attack or protect.
Try Other Words
- •Send: to make someone or something go somewhere (Use when the focus is on movement, not aggression)
- •Order: to tell someone to do something (Use when emphasizing the command, not the action itself)
- •Release: to let go or set free (Use when the dog is let loose to chase)
- •Chase: to run after something to catch it (Use when focusing on following, not necessarily attacking)
Unboxing
- •Word parts: "sic" (command to attack) + "-ing" (present participle suffix showing ongoing action)
- •Etymology: "sic" comes from old dog-training commands, possibly from Latin or old English, meaning "attack" or "go"
- •Historical development: Used in English since at least the 19th century as a command to dogs to attack or chase
- •Modern usage: Mostly used in informal speech or writing to describe ordering an animal to attack or chase
Reflect & Connect
•How does the word "siccing" change the feeling of a situation compared to simply "chasing"?
•Can "siccing" be used in a friendly or playful way, or is it always serious and aggressive?
Fill in the blanks
1.The owner was angry and ___ his dog to protect the house from strangers.
2.When the thief entered, the guard ___ the dog, and it started barking loudly.
3.Unlike calling a dog to come, ___ means telling it to go after someone or something.
4.The police ___ their dog to chase the suspect through the park.
5.Sometimes people ___ their friends on others when they want help in a fight.
6.The dog was ___ aggressively, showing it was ready to attack.
7.If you just want the dog to follow you, you do not ___ it; you call it gently.