hound
1one of any of several breeds of dogs trained to pursue game either by sight or by scent, especially one with a long face and large drooping ears.
Informal. any dog.
Slang.
an unpleasant, mean, or despicable person.
a man who chases women; a promiscuous man.
Informal. an ardent fan or devotee: an autograph hound.
one of the pursuers in the game of hare and hounds.
to hunt or track with hounds, or as a hound does; pursue.
to pursue or harass without respite: Her little brother wouldn't stop hounding her.
to incite (a hound) to pursuit or attack; urge on.
Informal. to incite or urge (a person) to do something (often followed by on): The committee has been hounded on by those who want these repairs done immediately.
Idioms about hound
follow the hounds, Fox Hunting. to participate in a hunt, especially as a member of the field.
ride to hounds, Fox Hunting. to participate in a hunt, whether as a member of the field or of the hunt staff.
Origin of hound
1Other words for hound
Other words from hound
- hound·er, noun
- hound·ish, hound·y, adjective
- hound·like, adjective
- un·hound·ed, adjective
Other definitions for hound (2 of 2)
Nautical. either of a pair of fore-and-aft members at the lower end of the head of a mast, for supporting the trestletrees, that support an upper mast at its heel.: Compare cheek (def. 12).
a horizontal bar or brace, usually one of a pair, for strengthening the running gear of a horse-drawn wagon or the like.
Origin of hound
2Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use hound in a sentence
Instead of protecting us, the police hounded and harassed us.
Opposing Gay Marriage Doesn’t Make You a Crypto-Racist | Jonathan Rauch | April 24, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTShe was hounded by the prying paparazzi, desperate to label her a partied-out starlet.
Taylor Momsen on Female Sexuality and Her Transformation from ‘Gossip Girl’ to Rock Star | Marlow Stern | March 18, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTHounded by the father of the surveillance state, J. Edgar Hoover, Chaplin gave up on America and retired to Switzerland.
She talks to Melissa Leon about being hounded—and the time a football team attacked her.
Rapper Kitty Pryde on ‘D.A.I.S.Y. Rage,’ Haters, Selling Out & More | Melissa Leon | January 31, 2013 | THE DAILY BEASTSo she was hounded out of the running, with neocon darling John McCain at the head of the pack.
Ordered one day to keep the law; ordered the next day to break the law; hounded by owners and threatened by the government!
Blow The Man Down | Holman DayAngel's wife felt almost as if she had been hounded up that hill like a scorned thing by those—to her—superfine clerics.
Tess of the d'Urbervilles | Thomas HardyHe has hounded that poor man to his death in revenge for the trifling sum of money which he was called on to pay for him.
The Prime Minister | Anthony TrollopeHounded out er France, poor souls, just like my own great-great-great-granther's father!
Flamsted quarries | Mary E. WallerThough passionately fond of his wife, yet there were times when McKenzie felt that he was being hounded ahead.
The Viking Blood | Frederick William Wallace
British Dictionary definitions for hound (1 of 2)
/ (haʊnd) /
any of several breeds of dog used for hunting
(in combination): an otterhound; a deerhound
the hounds a pack of foxhounds, etc
a dog, esp one regarded as annoying
a despicable person
(in hare and hounds) a runner who pursues a hare
slang, mainly US and Canadian an enthusiast: an autograph hound
short for houndfish See also nursehound
ride to hounds or follow the hounds to take part in a fox hunt with hounds
to pursue or chase relentlessly
to urge on
Origin of hound
1Derived forms of hound
- hounder, noun
British Dictionary definitions for hound (2 of 2)
/ (haʊnd) /
either of a pair of horizontal bars that reinforce the running gear of a horse-drawn vehicle
nautical either of a pair of fore-and-aft braces that serve as supports for a topmast
Origin of hound
2Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Other Idioms and Phrases with hound
see run with (the hare, hunt with the hounds).
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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