Region: US | Usage example: If you think I broke the vase, you're barking up the wrong tree—I wasn't even home.

Barking up the wrong tree

Meaning

Accusing or pursuing the wrong person/idea; making a false assumption.

Helpful when gently correcting someone who is making a misguided criticism or assumption.

Origin notes can vary by region and source; this page gives the commonly reported explanation and usage context.

Hunting dogs would bark at the base of a tree where they thought prey had climbed, even if it had escaped elsewhere.

Early American hunting literature in the 1800s documented the phrase; it spread into colloquial speech by the late 19th century.