verb
sick
To direct a dog or other attacker to attack someone.
The witness says the owner sicked the dog on him.
Etymology
Sic and sick are variants of a pursuit command associated with seek. They are unrelated to Latin sic, “thus,” and sick, “ill.”
More examples
- Do not sick your dog on strangers.
- He threatened to sick the watchdog on them.
- She accused him of sicking his followers on her.
Forms
sick · sicks · sicked · sicking
Similar words
- sic
- The more usual spelling for urging an attack.