jealous complaint; the loud bark of a talentless dog
Idiomatic expression meaning that incompetent people tend to complain loudly or criticize others out of jealousy. The literal image is of a talentless dog barking loudly.
His criticism is nothing more than the loud bark of a talentless dog.
あの人の文句はいつも能無し犬の高吠えだ。
That person's complaints are always just jealous barking.
Standard kanji spelling for this idiom.
Variant spelling using なし instead of 無し.
The exact origin is uncertain, but it is a proverbial expression comparing the loud barking of an untalented dog to the envious complaints of an incompetent person.