proverb · Words worth keeping
There are more ways to kill a dog than hanging.
There are more ways to kill a dog than hanging.
Historical period not yet established
Understand the thought
Meaning in plain English
A goal may have more than one possible method. The saying uses a harsh image to encourage finding an alternative when a chosen approach fails.
What the words are saying
The saying challenges the assumption that one failed method exhausts all possibilities. A useful reading can encourage adapting a plan while keeping the legitimate purpose in view. It does not make every means acceptable merely because it works. The source’s harm to an animal is not a recommendation: alternatives should be assessed for fairness, safety and their effects on others.
Everyday example
A group finds another way to distribute a document when its first suitable channel is unavailable.
When to use it
Use it to look for an appropriate alternative to a blocked method.
What it does not mean
A choice of methods does not justify cruelty or harmful means.
Agent-assisted editorial interpretation. This explains the words; it does not by itself verify their author or earliest origin.
Attribution & collection notes
- Author or tradition
- Traditional
Attribution: traditional - Country attributed
- Not established
A country attribution does not establish the earliest origin. - Historical period
- Historical period not yet established
No sufficiently supported historical placement has been established. Import and download dates are not treated as composition dates. - Recorded source
- A Dictionary of English Proverbs and Proverbial Phrases
Entry 1732 · Ways (more)
A collection's publication date can be later than the words it records.
- Culture
- English