flog a dead pony
Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.
Meaning · English
to continue trying to achieve something that is hopeless
Literally: whip a deceased small horse
Where it’s used:
Used
Widespread English
Examples
They're still trying to flog a dead pony with that failed business model
AI-drafted example auto-approved by rule (illustrative, not a corpus attestation)
Sources & notes
Listed in Wiktionary’s “English idioms” category (retrieved 2026-07-29); definition pending editorial review. Definition drafted by AI (@cf/meta/llama-3.3-70b-instruct-fp8-fast) and auto-approved by rule on 2026-07-30; pending editor spot-check.
Common questions
What does “flog a dead pony” mean?
to continue trying to achieve something that is hopeless Literally: whip a deceased small horse
Is “flog a dead pony” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.