English Vocabulary – flogging a dead horse

Idioms occupy an important section of any competitive exam. The options can appear very similar and in that case it could be difficult to find its meaning. Now what does flogging a dead horse mean? Read on..

flogging a dead horse/ beating a dead horse

Meaning- to waste time or effort on something that is not going to materialise, to go on or to insist on talking about a topic that no one is interested in or that has already been discussed/decided

Origin-This is an Anglophone (English speaking) idiom and comes from the mid- 19th century , when the practice of flogging or beating horses to make them go faster in horse races or otherwise was often viewed as acceptable. To flog or beat a dead horse would be useless, as it wouldn’t be able to go anywhere. An early written form of this idiom was found in an 1859 issue of a London paper Watchman and Wesleyan Advertiser. “It was notorious that Mr. Bright was dissatisfied with his winter reform campaign and rumour said that he had given up effort with the exclamation that it was like flogging a dead horse.”

Explanation-
Mr. Sam and Mr. Simson were candidates for the election of the mayor. After the election, as Mr. Sam who was less popular, won, some people wanted a re- election. “Wasn’t this just like flogging a horse to mention a re-election?”, asked the majority of them. Mr. Sam had a son named Joe who kept trying to get his article published but Mr. Sam felt that he was flogging a dead horse. Joe’s sister Jane was not serious about anything. Their mother said, “I’ve told her a number of times to manage her routine effectively, but I’ve just been flogging a dead horse.‘ Jane’s friends were discussing about a night party. Jenny said, “You’re flogging a dead horse trying to persuade Jane to come with us as she hates going out at night.” The next day in Jane’s college the teacher was flogging a dead horse when he lectured the students about the ill effects of too much technology- they were glued to their cell phones while he spoke.