what kind function does "dog" serve in "You are dog!"

[rou]

I suppose when somebody is name calling, "You are dog!" might have been said (note the missing "a" before "dog"). If this is right, what function (as in being a noun or verb) does the word "dog" serve in such a sentence (if I could call it a sentence, that is)?

 

[5jj]

Both 'You are dog' (ungrammatical) and 'You are a dog' (grammatical) are unnatural English. Neither is likely to be said by a native speaker. 'Dog' is a noun.

 

[MikeNewYork]

I suppose when somebody is name calling, "You are dog!" might have been said (note the missing "a" before "dog"). If this is right, what function (as in being a noun or verb) does the word "dog" serve in such a sentence (if I could call it a sentence, that is)?

In AmE, "dog" has some slang meanings. One can say "You dog!" or "You are a dog".

See the first set of definitions here: dog - definition of dog by the Free Online Dictionary, Thesaurus and Encyclopedia.

 

[JMurray]

not a teacher

And then there's Louis Armstrong in one of his many recorded versions of "I'll Be Glad When You're Dead, You Rascal You".

"You bought my wife a bottle of Coca Cola, so you could play on her Victrola, you dog!"