bulldog
Americannoun
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bulldogs
plural
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one of an English breed of medium-sized, short-haired, muscular dogs with prominent, undershot jaws, usually having a white and tan or brindled coat, raised originally for bullbaiting.
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Informal. a stubbornly persistent person.
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a short-barreled revolver of large caliber.
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Metallurgy. slag from a puddling furnace.
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an assistant to the proctor at Oxford and Cambridge universities.
adjective
verb (used with object)
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to attack in the manner of a bulldog.
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Western U.S. to throw (a calf, steer, etc.) to the ground by seizing the horns and twisting the head.
noun
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a sturdy thickset breed of dog with an undershot jaw, short nose, broad head, and a muscular body
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(at Oxford University) an official who accompanies the proctors on ceremonial occasions
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commerce a fixed-interest bond issued in Britain by a foreign borrower
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of bulldog
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
It’s her fourth time participating, and last year she secured second place, losing to a 2-year-old hairless Frenchie and English bulldog mix named Petunia who had been rescued from a backyard breeder in Las Vegas.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 18, 2026
Known for his folksy charm, Justice now appears at Senate committee meetings with his English bulldog Babydog, who has become a fixture on Capitol Hill and had her “testimony” entered into the Congressional Record.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 6, 2026
Loo said they managed to gather his mother-in-law’s medication, supplies for their French bulldog, Wednesday, important documents and other essentials.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 23, 2026
They told the landlord they had one French bulldog, despite owning a micro bully and two XL bullies, a breed banned in 2024.
From BBC ● Apr. 17, 2026
Mr. Ingram next door to them probably won’t like that I run through his yard and get his old bulldog worked up.
From "The Manifestor Prophecy" by Angie Thomas
Could she and Kelce make Samoyeds the next French bulldogs?
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 18, 2026
“Due to the unique anatomy of their airways, bulldogs can experience more respiratory distress in their golden years and may also have a harder time regulating their temperature as a result,” Greenstein says.
From MarketWatch ● May 19, 2026
We bought a house in the Valley, have two rescue bulldogs.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 30, 2026
Other popular members of this snub-nosed club include English bulldogs, Boston terriers, pugs and Brussels griffons.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 28, 2025
They also raised cattle, goats, ducks, turkeys, terriers, bees, and English bulldogs.
From "The Woman All Spies Fear" by Amy Butler Greenfield
Hughes's bulldogged determination could make things interesting at the end.
From Time Magazine Archive
Next day one was still at large in the countryside; the other was bulldogged after he darted into a ball game, tossed two would-be captors, and tried to gore an automobile.
From Time Magazine Archive
Rozier is a brute with guile, whose balance is such that he seems to be bulldogged off the field more often than he is tumbled off his feet.
From Time Magazine Archive
The Federal Board took its cues from the State but the final decision on the status of any lot of oil actually rested on a bulldogged, stone-steady gentleman named Captain E. N. Stanley.
From Time Magazine Archive
With my three little traps and a bulldogged determination, I set out to trap Mister Ringtail.
From "Where the Red Fern Grows" by Wilson Rawls
“And the amount of energy and the amount of focus you need to have in bulldogging is the same as in football.”
From Seattle Times ● Oct. 12, 2023
Fort Collins, for instance, was supposed to have goat roping, steer bulldogging competitions, a shooting exhibition from the U.S.
From Slate ● Jul. 4, 2021
William “Bill” Pickett was a famous rodeo star credited with founding the sport bulldogging, also known as steer wrestling.
From Fox News ● Jul. 3, 2020
“Some guys just have a knack of bulldogging their way through an inning, you know?”
From New York Times ● Oct. 12, 2014
Mr. Huxley stopped in a few times while they were there, to take breaks from his bulldogging and to get more direction and advice from Charles.
From "Charles and Emma: The Darwins' Leap of Faith" by Deborah Heiligman
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