dead horse

noun

: an exhausted or profitless topic or issue
usually used in the phrases beat a dead horse and flog a dead horse

Examples of dead horse in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
No Business Like Show Business By 1900, The Billboard covered more than best (and worst) practices for bill posters, who early issues reported would glue ads on ash cans, piles of bricks and even, according to the first issue, a dead horse. Joe Lynch, Billboard, 9 Dec. 2024 Overall Might as well keep beating this poor, dead horse. Gary Davenport, The Athletic, 5 Aug. 2024 Just a sanger with a beef snag and a bit of dead horse. Claire Reilly, Axios, 5 Nov. 2024 This is beating an incredibly dead horse, but John Mulaney is good at hosting stuff. Bethy Squires, Vulture, 2 Aug. 2024 See all Example Sentences for dead horse 

Word History

First Known Use

1830, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of dead horse was in 1830

Dictionary Entries Near dead horse

Cite this Entry

“Dead horse.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dead%20horse. Accessed 22 Dec. 2024.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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