a dog in the manger
someone who cannot have or does not need something, but does not want anyone else to have it

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

dog in the manger
someone who keeps something that they do not really want in order to prevent anyone else from having it.
Stop being such a dog in the manger and let your sister ride your bike if you're not using it.

[TahlilGaran] English Idioms Dictionary ▲

dog-in-the-manger
a dog in the manger - someone who keeps something that they do not really want in order to prevent anyone else from having it.
The British have a dog-in-the-manger attitude to the island, no longer needing it themselves, but wanting to deny it to others.
(always before noun)

[TahlilGaran] English Idioms Dictionary ▲

dog in the manger
someone who prevents others from doing what he does not want them to do (in Aesop's Fables a dog that cannot eat hay lays in the hayrack and prevents the other animals from eating the hay)
The girl was a dog in the manger when she cancelled the dinner because she could not attend.

My friend always acts like a dog in the manger and often tries to prevent us from enjoying ourselves.

[TahlilGaran] English Idioms Dictionary ▲

dog in the manger
n. phr. A person who is unwilling to let another use what he himself has no use for.
Although Valerie lives alone in that big house, she is like a dog in the manger when it comes to letting someone sharing it with her.

[TahlilGaran] English Idioms Dictionary ▲