1,400 new words in our dictionary! — Parasocial, glow-up, promposal & more
1,400 new words in our dictionary! — More

bird-dog 1 of 2

verb

ˈbərd-ˌdȯg How to pronounce bird-dog (audio)
Definition of bird-dognext
as in to chase
to go after or on the track of suspecting infidelity, he hired a private detective to bird-dog his wife

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

bird dog

2 of 2

noun

as in wolf dog

Related Words

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for bird-dog
  1. chase
  2. wolf dog
  3. track
  4. sled dog
  5. pursue
  6. puppy dog
  7. dog
  8. hunter
Verb
  • In the here and now, Kuss is still chasing a stage win at the ongoing Vuelta, a task made more difficult by his presence in the podium fight until midway through the second week.
    — Chris Marshall-Bell, New York Times, 11 Sep. 2026
  • Five weeks ago, in a two-minute drill during practice, Mahomes scrambled on fourth down but couldn’t evade a 300-pound rookie defensive tackle chasing after him.
    — Sam McDowell, Kansas City Star, 11 Sep. 2026
Definition of chase
Noun
  • That means if a wolf dog ever bites someone, euthanasia and testing may be required.
    — Liz O'Connell, MSNBC Newsweek, 8 Oct. 2025
  • Possessing second-generation wolf dogs, defined in California as the offspring of a domestic dog and a half-wolf, half-dog hybrid — with no more than 25% wolf — is legal.
    — Darrell Smith, Sacramento Bee, 27 Jan. 2025
Definition of wolf dog
Verb
  • The product tracks sleep patterns and measures users’ quality of rest.
    — Matthew Futterman, New York Times, 6 Sep. 2026
  • Millions of dollars invested, millions tracked In Broward, Florida’s second most-populous county, law enforcement agencies have spent over $3 million combined to build their surveillance networks.
    — Devoun Cetoute, Miami Herald, 5 Sep. 2026
Definition of track
Noun
  • This is where the Alaska Railroad train station, sled dog kennels, and the majority of visitor centers are located.
    — Tamara Gane, Travel + Leisure, 11 May 2026
  • The race is a qualifier for the Iditarod sled dog race, which takes place annually in Alaska.
    — Jenna Prestininzi, Freep.com, 12 Feb. 2026
Definition of sled dog
Verb
  • Record signing Luka Vuskovic is setting a high bar in the Premier League for Brighton & Hove Albion’s 10 other summer transfer window signings to pursue.
    — Andy Naylor, New York Times, 7 Sep. 2026
  • Pancho’s brothers pursued their own leads, at one point visiting a local leader of organized crime.
    — Kate Linthicum, Los Angeles Times, 6 Sep. 2026
Definition of pursue
Noun
  • Kenny is super likable but kind of just follows Boyd around like a puppy dog.
    — Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 5 July 2026
  • Cassie is trying to become social-media famous, suggestively flashing her all-American assets online in a variety of fetishy costumes (a puppy dog, a pacifier-sucking baby).
    — Naomi Fry, New Yorker, 18 Apr. 2026
Definition of puppy dog
Verb
  • In their rematch, McKee was dogged by questions about his administration’s work to replace a critical bridge in the state capital that was abruptly closed due to safety problems in 2023.
    — Kimberlee Kruesi, Fortune, 10 Sep. 2026
  • In their rematch, he's been dogged by questions about his administration's work to replace a critical bridge in the state capital that was abruptly closed due to safety problems in 2023.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 9 Sep. 2026
Definition of dog
Noun
  • For the hunters, a massive grey orb with a ramp protruding from it is one clue.
    — Robert Abele, Los Angeles Times, 11 Sep. 2026
  • The first body was found by hunters in February 1994, followed by at least five more bodies over the next three years.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 10 Sep. 2026
Definition of hunter
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Browse Nearby Words

birdbrains
bird-dog
bird dog
See all Nearby Words

Podcast

Theme music by Joshua Stamper ©2006 New Jerusalem Music/ASCAP

Cite this Entry

“Bird-dog.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bird-dog. Accessed 17 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of watershed

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

The Exceptions of '-s' and '-es' Plurals

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary

Words from the 'Odyssey'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
funny guinea pig in glasses reading a book
Challenging Words You Should Know Vol 2 Words to the wise
See All