这个短语的字面解释是“对着错误的树吠”,这是什么意思呢?请看对话:
A: What’s your complaint with Jason?
B: He was barking up the wrong tree when he said I was the one that ate his cookies after he left the room.
A: But you’re his roommate!
B: Well, it was actually his dog Max who ate the cookies!
Note: The idiom means to “make a wrong assumption about someone or something.” If a person is being falsely accused of something, they might use this phrase to inform the accuser that they are mistaken. The origin of this phrase is believed to be rooted in dogs and hunting. After spotting another animal, a dog will likely give chase. The fleeing animal, if it is capable, may decide to climb a tree in order to get away. Since dogs are not great at climbing trees, they will remain at the trunk of the tree and bark, which gives the hunter an indication on where the fleeing animal went. If a dog fails to pick the right tree, then they are literally “barking up the wrong the tree.”
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