underdog
noun
un·der·dog
ˈən-dər-ˌdȯg 
1
: a loser or predicted loser in a struggle or contest
… the biggest obstacle has been the adjustment from underdog last season to contender …—
Mike Wise
Mike Wise2
: a victim of injustice or persecution
… portrayed himself as an honest underdog that the Government would do anything to stop.—Michael Specter
Michael SpecterExamples of underdog in a Sentence
I always root for the underdog instead of the favorite.
As a lawyer, she consistently represented the underdog.
Recent Examples on the Web
Green Bay was on the wrong end of one of the biggest upsets in years last Sunday, losing to the Panthers as two-touchdown underdogs.
—Tyler Everett, MSNBC Newsweek, 6 Nov. 2025
Mamdani's underdog campaign defeated both the incumbent mayor and a name-brand governor.
—Kyler Alvord, PEOPLE, 5 Nov. 2025
The piece Lee publishes isn’t a Pulitzer-winning takedown, but a posthumous profile of the reclusive, kind-hearted Dale, a man who shares Dale’s love of crime writers like Jim Thompson and instinctive empathy for underdogs.
—Alison Herman, Variety, 5 Nov. 2025
Giant follows the rise of Hamed and his relationship with Irish boxing trainer Brendan Ingle, charting his rags-to-riches underdog tale from his humble beginnings in Sheffield to becoming champion of the world.
—Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 4 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for underdog
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Tyler Everett, MSNBC Newsweek, 6 Nov. 2025
Mamdani's underdog campaign defeated both the incumbent mayor and a name-brand governor.
—Kyler Alvord, PEOPLE, 5 Nov. 2025
The piece Lee publishes isn’t a Pulitzer-winning takedown, but a posthumous profile of the reclusive, kind-hearted Dale, a man who shares Dale’s love of crime writers like Jim Thompson and instinctive empathy for underdogs.
—Alison Herman, Variety, 5 Nov. 2025
Giant follows the rise of Hamed and his relationship with Irish boxing trainer Brendan Ingle, charting his rags-to-riches underdog tale from his humble beginnings in Sheffield to becoming champion of the world.
—Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 4 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for underdog
Cite this Entry
“Underdog.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/underdog. Accessed 7 Nov. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
underdog
noun
un·der·dog
ˈən-dər-ˌdȯg
: the loser or predicted loser in a struggle
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