underdog
Americannoun
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a person who is expected to lose in a contest or conflict.
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a victim of social or political injustice.
The underdogs were beginning to organize their protests.
noun
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the competitor least likely to win a fight or contest
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a person in adversity or in a position of inferiority
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of underdog
1875–80, under- + dog ( def. )
Explanation
An underdog is someone who isn't likely to win a competition or contest. When a professional basketball player faces off against a high school student who's a foot shorter, the high schooler is the underdog. Anyone at a disadvantage, whether in general or in a particular situation, can be called an underdog. In sports, it's common to call the team that's expected to lose in a game the underdog. This word was originally used in dogfighting around 1887, to refer to a dog defeated in a fight. A 1960s cartoon character named Underdog was an unlikely (and under-qualified) superhero dog. The show's tagline was "There's no need to fear! Underdog is here!"
Vocabulary lists containing underdog
Idioms and Expressions, List 1
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Academy Awards, List 2
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My Brother Sam is Dead
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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:
Filipinos' love for rags-to-riches underdog stories and big personalities have also made boxing and beauty pageants just as popular.
From BBC ● Jul. 25, 2026
Who wouldn’t be moved by the heroic performances of underdog countries against the game’s traditional powers, like tiny Cabo Verde and ancient Egypt?
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 20, 2026
The new format, expanding team participation from 32 to 48, has brought to center stage smaller, underdog countries that have outperformed expectations, produced unexpected heroes and warmed our collective hearts.
From Salon ● Jul. 18, 2026
Both underdog sides were passive and deliberately so.
From BBC ● Jun. 26, 2026
They have certainly been the underdog long enough.
From "A Confederacy of Dunces" by John Kennedy Toole
A recommitment to the outcasts, the overlooked, the underdogs of society.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026
And on this point, the Norwegians are willing to concede that they are underdogs.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 11, 2026
They didn't play like underdogs, they played like equals.
From BBC ● Jul. 7, 2026
The likelihood of Morocco, ranked the sixth best international side in the world, being held or beaten on the back of big breaks going the way of the underdogs is a dream too far.
From BBC ● Jun. 19, 2026
Having so recently been one of the underdogs of the savannah, we are full of fears and anxieties over our position, which makes us doubly cruel and dangerous.
From "Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind" by Yuval Noah Harari
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.
