dog whistle

noun \ ˈdȯg-ˈhwi-səl , -ˈwi- \

variants: or less commonly dog-whistle

Updated on: 11 Apr 2018

Definition of dog whistle

1 : a whistle to call or direct a dog; especially : one sounding at a frequency inaudible to the human ear

2 politics : an expression or statement that has a secondary meaning intended to be understood only by a particular group of people

Democrats and liberals sometimes have gone to ridiculous lengths to portray speech by Republicans and conservatives as dog whistles responsible for inciting unstable people to carry out violent acts …
—The Columbus (Ohio) Dispatch

… habitually inserts dog-whistles into his speeches to motivate evangelical voters.
—The Economist

—often used before another noun

That is the fundamental perversity of 'dog whistle politics', whereby political parties send coded messages that will be heard one way by their core supporters and another way altogether by others.
—Robert E. Goodin

Recent Examples of dog whistle from the Web

Of course, Putin often sends conspiratorial dog whistles to his more extreme followers.

— eliot borenstein, Washington Post, "Was Putin really blaming Jews for interfering in the U.S. election? Probably not.," 12 Mar. 2018
For the chief law enforcement officer to use a dog whistle like that is appalling.

— jessica estepa, USA TODAY, "Jeff Sessions: Sheriffs are important part of 'Anglo-American heritage of law enforcement'," 13 Feb. 2018
Secure America Now turned the dog whistle of broadcast political advertising into a shock collar.

— anthony nadler, WIRED, "Facebook and Google Must Ban Ads From Dark Money Groups," 21 Mar. 2018
LaPierre spent more than 30 minutes offering CPAC extended dog whistles about the dangers of possible changes to the 2nd Amendment, arguing that if one freedom goes, the rest will follow.

— john hendrickson, Esquire, "Wayne LaPierre Is Not Backing Down," 22 Feb. 2018
Instead, law and order became a dog whistle of the campaign of Richard M. Nixon, whose presidency would usher in the militarization of local police instead of significant economic cures.

— mark curnutte, USA TODAY, "50 years after his death, King's America still a world of trouble," 13 Jan. 2018
Moore’s shifting denials, dog whistles and motley cast of campaign surrogates completed the picture of a remarkably terrible candidate and campaign.

— aaron blake, Washington Post, "Winners and losers from 2017, the year in politics," 1 Jan. 2018
Seriously, the Chicago gun thing is just a tired cacophony of racist dog whistles the NRA blows whenever there is a push to change gun laws.

— stephen a. crockett jr., The Root, "Deranged NRA Spokeswoman: The Media Loves Mass Shootings, and Crying White Mothers Are Ratings Gold," 22 Feb. 2018
Earlier in the weekend he'd been attacked by a Fox News host in a dog whistling play for attention, and by Saturday LeBron had responded with an effortless, pitch perfect blend of disgust and indifference.

— andrew sharp, SI.com, "NBA All-Star Weekend: The Best and Weirdest Business Convention in the World," 19 Feb. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'dog whistle.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.