“Barking up the wrong tree” is a 19th-century American phrase that means you're pursuing the wrong idea or blaming the wrong person. It comes from old hunting traditions, where dogs chased animals like raccoons into trees. Sometimes, though, the prey would escape, and the dog would end up barking at an empty tree, confident, but completely mistaken.

The phrase gained traction in the early 1800s, with one of its first appearances in Davy Crockett’s 1833 book. By the mid-century, it had become a popular way to describe someone who was way off track.