barking up the wrong tree
USbahr-king up thuh rawng TREE/ˌbɑɹkɪŋ ʌp ðə ˌɹɔŋ ˈtɹi/UKbah-king up thuh rong TREE/ˌbɑːkɪŋ ʌp ðə ˌɹɒŋ ˈtɹiː/
- 1Present participle and gerund of bark up the wrong tree. Use it for the ongoing action of looking in the wrong place.
If you think I took your phone, you're barking up the wrong tree.
The police spent weeks barking up the wrong tree before they found the real thief.
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