underbelly
noun
un·der·bel·ly
ˈən-dər-ˌbe-lē 
1
: a vulnerable area
also
: a corrupt or sordid part
probing the underbelly of the entertainment industry
2
: the underside of a body or mass
Examples of underbelly in a Sentence
They exposed the underbelly of the nation's economic policy.
the sordid underbelly of city life
Recent Examples on the Web
For her work in the true crime genre, Sarian earned the 2025 Webby Award for her podcast Dark History, which explores the past’s dark underbelly.
—
Etan Vlessing, HollywoodReporter, 6 Oct. 2025
Listening to masterful albums like 3800 Degrees is a glimpse into the underbelly of the attention economy.
—Jayson Buford, Rolling Stone, 30 Sep. 2025
The three Aud books are novels of character, crime fiction that uses the classic tropes of noir — first-person narrator, fast-moving prose, corruption in high places and crimes of desperation in the urban underbelly — without being noir.
—Erik Pedersen, Oc Register, 19 Sep. 2025
The Penguin, for control over Gotham City's criminal underbelly in this HBO Max series.
—Carson Blackwelder, PEOPLE, 15 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for underbelly
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Etan Vlessing, HollywoodReporter, 6 Oct. 2025
Listening to masterful albums like 3800 Degrees is a glimpse into the underbelly of the attention economy.
—Jayson Buford, Rolling Stone, 30 Sep. 2025
The three Aud books are novels of character, crime fiction that uses the classic tropes of noir — first-person narrator, fast-moving prose, corruption in high places and crimes of desperation in the urban underbelly — without being noir.
—Erik Pedersen, Oc Register, 19 Sep. 2025
The Penguin, for control over Gotham City's criminal underbelly in this HBO Max series.
—Carson Blackwelder, PEOPLE, 15 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for underbelly
Cite this Entry
“Underbelly.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/underbelly. Accessed 8 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
underbelly
noun
un·der·bel·ly
ˈən-dər-ˌbel-ē
: the underpart of a body or mass
the underbelly of a bomber
also
: an area open to attack or damage
the army's underbelly
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