Why these sayings?

[acorn]

I have always been curious by the phrases dressed up like a dogs dinner meaning (i believe) that someone is overdressed or incorrectly dressed for an ocassion. And then theres the other one being the dogs bol***ks meaning your just great - the best. Personally im not sure which one id rather be!!! But can anyone hazard a guess as to why these sayings came into being??

[Hammond Egg]

I don't know about being dressed up like a dog's dinner, but I have heard two explanations about the other phrase.

First, it's the printer's symbol :- which came to mean anything prominent (physically) or outstanding and from that came to mean anything very good.

The other explanation came from early versions of (I think) Meccano which were originally sold in boxes of two sizes, box standard and box de luxe. These came to be corrupted as bog standard (for ordinary) and dog's bol***ks, for very good.

I'm not sure which one to believe, and I am sure someone else will come up with a different, but equally plausible, answer.

[Solitaire]

Yes it is a person dressed incorrectly.Because To Us dog food might not look nice but to a dog It's heaven!So it's like some people think It's a dogs dinner cause the dont look nice and others think,Phwoar!Look at the ass on her!

eg.Jodie Marsh dresses like a dogs dinner.

[snook]

Hammond Egg, I like your second explanation. If it isn't the real explanation for those two phrases, it damn well should be!

[acorn]

Wow Hammond Egg - i never realised they were a printers symbol! Still not sure which id rather be though!

[Xollob]

One theory for the positive term "dog's b*ll*cks" is that they must be good because dogs spend so much time licking them. The bog standard/bog deluxe theory has its doubters, including etymologist Michael Quinion.

Much more information on Wikepedia.

[Xollob]

Sorry about the last link. You'll have to replace the automatically generated asterisks with the B-word.