dark horse

noun

1

a

: a usually little known contender (such as a racehorse) that makes an unexpectedly good showing

b

: an entrant in a contest that is judged unlikely to succeed

2

: a political candidate unexpectedly nominated usually as a compromise between factions

Examples of dark horse in a Sentence

The Democrat from Utah has gone from being a dark horse to the front-runner in the campaign for President.

The movie is a dark horse for the award.

He is a dark horse, but I did find out that he once played football professionally.

Recent Examples on the Web

But when a dark horse candidate emerges, bodies start to stack up and things get messy very fast. —K. Thor Jensen, PC Magazine, 16 May 2025

As always, the potential for a dark horse candidate remains a possibility. —Jake Kanter, Deadline, 9 May 2025

Canadian Corey Conners, picked by some as a dark horse candidate to win this week, birdied three of his final four holes to also sit 4-under heading into Friday. —Scott Thompson, FOXNews.com, 10 Apr. 2025

In 2023, some viewed the program as a Big 12 dark horse. —Antonio Morales, The Athletic, 21 Feb. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1821, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Rhymes for dark horse

• concourse
• divorce
• endorse
• enforce
• indorse
• midcourse
• outsource
• perforce
• racecourse
• racehorse
• remorse
• seahorse

Kids Definition

dark horse

noun

: a contestant or a political figure whose abilities and chances of winning are not known

the convention nominated a dark horse