9 Bark up the wrong tree 錯怪了某人

Originating back when hunting was still a major sport, this phrase came from when animals were used to track, catch or retrieve prey. This applies, not least, to dogs. Dogs were used in the chasing of raccoons, which was chiefly undertaken at night and were trained to indicate the tree in which the animal had taken refuge by barking at it. Of course, even dogs can err and, at times, barked up the wrong tree.

這句話要追溯到以打獵為主要運動的時代，這時的動物們被用來追蹤、捕獵和取回獵物。這個應用，尤其針對狗。狗在當時被用來追蹤浣熊，一般都在夜晚進行。狗是被訓練過的，可以在浣熊的藏身之樹前大叫。當然，狗也有犯錯的時候，它可能對著錯誤的樹大叫...