1
as in underworld
a social sphere that exists outside of the mainstream
unable to get work in mainstream films, the actor ended up in Hollywood's underbelly—the porn industry
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in underside
the side or part facing downward from something
the underbelly of the old submarine is in bad shape
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in back
a vulnerable point
the vast, thinly guarded southern border was obviously the underbelly of the nation's line of defense
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of underbelly
The hypothesis is that these planets eventually lose the ability to sequester planet-warming greenhouse gases in their geologic underbelly.
—
Quanta Magazine, 15 Sep. 2025
Tyler Perry's gone full sicko mode with Beauty in Black, a soapy thriller about an exotic dancer who infiltrates the lives of the Bellarie beauty dynasty and disrupts its connections to a seedy criminal underbelly.
—Randall Colburn, Entertainment Weekly, 11 Sep. 2025
Westman had decorated the assault rifle and shotgun with hate speech in ways that aligned with the dark underbelly of alt-right meme culture that regularly disparages people of color, Jewish people, the LGBTQ+, and people with disabilities.
—Natalie Eilbert, jsonline.com, 29 Aug. 2025
The film’s first trailer hinted at something frisky and fun and glossy, with a thrilling underbelly, a sexy and wild outing that will put Ibsen in an entirely new light.
—Kate Erbland, IndieWire, 25 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for underbelly
Quanta Magazine, 15 Sep. 2025
Tyler Perry's gone full sicko mode with Beauty in Black, a soapy thriller about an exotic dancer who infiltrates the lives of the Bellarie beauty dynasty and disrupts its connections to a seedy criminal underbelly.
—Randall Colburn, Entertainment Weekly, 11 Sep. 2025
Westman had decorated the assault rifle and shotgun with hate speech in ways that aligned with the dark underbelly of alt-right meme culture that regularly disparages people of color, Jewish people, the LGBTQ+, and people with disabilities.
—Natalie Eilbert, jsonline.com, 29 Aug. 2025
The film’s first trailer hinted at something frisky and fun and glossy, with a thrilling underbelly, a sexy and wild outing that will put Ibsen in an entirely new light.
—Kate Erbland, IndieWire, 25 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for underbelly
Recent Examples of Synonyms for underbelly
Noun
-
The sequel to 2021's Furioza brings us back into the dark and unsettling Polish underworld, as a young scumbag gets stuck under the thumb of the police and has to infiltrate a notorious prison as an informant.—
PC Magazine,
PC Magazine,
10 Oct. 2025
-
Cue his descent into a sinister underworld full of masked orgies—and all hell breaking loose.—
Radhika Seth,
Vogue,
8 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
There was blood on the underside of a barstool.—
Keith Sharon,
Nashville Tennessean,
7 Oct. 2025
-
Since the underside is steel, its filter is stuck in place using magnetic strips.—
Thomas Soderstrom,
PC Magazine,
4 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Both backs seemed excited about employing more pony looks.—
Joseph Person,
New York Times,
16 Oct. 2025
-
The skirt featured extra structural fabric on the sides and the back, which gave it additional drama.—
Lori A Bashian,
FOXNews.com,
16 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
In the second game of the series, Dodgers ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto pitched a no-hitter until his last batter, Jackson Holiday, hit a home run with two outs in the bottom of the ninth.—
Nelson Espinal,
MSNBC Newsweek,
14 Oct. 2025
-
The pastel hues are broken up at the bottom of this pair with burgundy rubber below the shoe’s signature Abzorb SBS cushioning pods.—
Riley Jones,
Footwear News,
14 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Over the next few days, the eggplants sat in my crisper drawer, soft spots spreading across their skin like bruises.—
Reem Kassis,
The Atlantic,
11 Oct. 2025
-
Yet there is a soft spot in many partnerships.—
Jim Moore,
Outdoor Life,
8 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
The actress manages to pull this off with subtlety and grace in a movie that could have easily gone straight for the emotional jugular.—
Bilge Ebiri,
Vulture,
10 Oct. 2025
-
Two months before Twilight kicked off the glittery vampire craze, Alan Ball’s True Blood had already put an original, sexy spin on the jugular-draining genre.—
Matt Cabral,
Entertainment Weekly,
4 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Underbelly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/underbelly. Accessed 18 Oct. 2025.
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