underbelly
Americannoun
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underbellies
plural
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the lower abdomen; posterior ventral area, as of an animal's body.
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the lower surface of an object; underside.
the underbelly of an airplane.
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a vulnerable area; weak point.
an attack on the soft underbelly of Europe.
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a dark, seamy, often hidden area or side.
a police officer continually exposed to the underbelly of society.
noun
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the part of an animal's belly nearest to the ground
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a vulnerable or unprotected part, aspect, or region
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of underbelly
Explanation
The underbelly of something is its secret weakness, something about it that's not protected from harm. Once a computer hacker discovers a network's underbelly, they're easily able to hack into it. Literally, an underbelly is just that: it's the abdomen of an animal, the soft lower belly. Often, that's also the most vulnerable part of an animal's body, since it contains major organs, and it's where the figurative meaning comes from. An alternate informal definition is "a hidden, criminal part of society," like the underbelly of a city where criminals trade stolen goods.
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:
Across the globe, military bases are being targeted as a soft underbelly.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026
With all the talk of Roth IRAs and loans and promises, it’s too easy to overlook turning this deal over and looking at the underbelly.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 6, 2026
Winer was his guide to the political underbelly, Kao said.
From Salon ● Sep. 23, 2026
That wicket exposed the tender underbelly of Essex's batting and revived fears of a battle against relegation in the run-in to the Division One season.
From BBC ● Sep. 3, 2026
That’s what you see, Mariam jo, he had said, the dark in their underbelly.
From "A Thousand Splendid Suns" by Khaled Hosseini
Oseguera González’s counsel responded by telling jurors they should be skeptical of key witnesses “who have made that deal with the government” — an arrangement that he called “one of the underbellies of criminal justice.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 18, 2024
In this cool forest damp is nurtured a fairyland of fungi, aglow in the dank underbellies of logs, nooks and crooks of branches.
From Seattle Times ● Mar. 14, 2022
With creamy white underbellies and an unmistakable crown of shaggy feathers, a Philippine eagle makes a regal impression.
From National Geographic ● Jan. 28, 2021
But its high-profile status and historical willingness to turn a blind eye to the sources of its funding offers a vivid example of these deals’ underbellies.
From Washington Post ● Oct. 16, 2018
Thunder grumbled over the ocean and lightning lit the underbellies of the clouds, flashing from sea to sky and back again.
From "Ship Breaker" by Paolo Bacigalupi
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
