top dog

Definition of top dog

: a person, group, or thing in a position of authority especially through victory in a hard-fought competition

Examples of top dog in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Dax assists his handler Deputy John Forlenza and was named top dog in the Law Enforcement category PEOPLE Now airs live, Monday through Friday, from the Meredith offices in New York City. — People Staff, PEOPLE.com, "Meet the American Humane Hero Dog Who Apprehended a Suspect Hiding in an Attic," 21 Oct. 2019 The top dogs at WeWork, eBay and Juul all got bounced, and Herbert Diess of Volkswagen was charged with stock market manipulation. — David Meyer, Fortune, "A Bad Week for CEOs: CEO Daily," 30 Sep. 2019 Of the top dogs, Kamara is in the best offense and is the most efficient performer (per Football Outsiders' 2018 rankings). — Des Bieler, chicagotribune.com, "The top fantasy football running backs to draft in 2019," 8 Aug. 2019 There was a profound sense of frustration and grief in Turin when the reigning top dogs of Italy were unceremoniously dumped out of last season's Champions League by Ajax. — SI.com, "Adrien Rabiot: Why Juventus' Free Frenchman Is the Bargain Signing of the Summer," 28 July 2019 With 422 yards on offense and five players scoring touchdowns, Burbank came out the top dog in a 39-21 victory. — Vincent Nguyenstaff Writer, Burbank Leader, "Offensive onslaught powers Burbank football past Pasadena," 26 Sep. 2019 Here is a look at other top dogs that have, at one point, sniffed around the White House. — Kasondra Van Treeck, chicagotribune.com, "Ivanka Trump’s new dog has people talking. Here’s a look at other presidential pups.," 24 July 2019 But as Taven points out, Ring of Honor has been around for 17 years, never as the top dog but almost always as a major player on the national scene. — Jay Reddick, orlandosentinel.com, "Matt Taven a steady force in turbulent time for Ring of Honor wrestling," 4 Apr. 2019 The 2017 and 2018 editions were hosted in Budapest, Hungary and Reims, France and the gold medal winners last year in singles and doubles -- top dogs of 90 competitors -- were given $10,000. — Matias Grez And Tom Collins, CNN, "Teqball: What Ronaldinho did next," 5 Aug. 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'top dog.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Last Updated

7 Dec 2019

Cite this Entry

“Top dog.” The Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster Inc., https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/top%20dog. Accessed 8 December 2019.

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