dark horses

noun

plural of dark horse
1
as in stalking horses

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words
2
as in long shots

Related Words

Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for dark horses
  1. competitors
  2. plays
  3. favorites
  4. contestants
  5. entrants
  6. qualifiers
  7. entries
  8. candidates
Noun
  • The White House said Canada’s policies gave foreign competitors an unfair advantage.
    — Bonny Chu, FOXNews.com, 22 July 2026
  • When more competitors can access similar capabilities, the advantage shifts to the quality of the context, evidence and judgement behind the work.
    — Danny Philamond, Forbes.com, 22 July 2026
Definition of competitors
Noun
  • Another $200 a month goes to attending plays and other entertainment.
    — Santul Nerkar, New York Times, 20 July 2026
  • The full-length has spent 38 frames on that list, which details the albums that earn the most plays via streaming sites in the United States.
    — Hugh McIntyre, Forbes.com, 20 July 2026
Definition of plays
Noun
  • The Greek myths are rife with petty and meddlesome deities squabbling, playing favorites, punishing harshly, and otherwise wreaking havoc on the lives of mortal men.
    — Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 17 July 2026
  • The casual menu ranges from breakfast favorites like avocado toast and biscuits to hearty bowls, salads, sandwiches, and shareable bites.
    — Lauren Dana Ellman, Travel + Leisure, 17 July 2026
Definition of favorites
Noun
  • Of those 10 contestants, five will be eliminated at the end of this episode.
    — Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 17 July 2026
  • The contestants had 50 minutes to make a dessert of their choice.
    — Kansas City Star, Kansas City Star, 16 July 2026
Definition of contestants
Noun
  • Categories for entrants in the pet parade included cutest pet, an owner and pet dress-alike, the biggest and smallest pet, most unusual pet and best trick.
    — David Sharos, Chicago Tribune, 19 July 2026
  • Countries that mandate design reforms and age limits open up more space for competition from new entrants who designed their products for safety from the start.
    — Ravi Iyer, Time, 18 July 2026
Definition of entrants
Noun
  • For the first time in quite a while, the western and eastern Europe qualifiers have been merged into one super qualifier, featuring top teams from both regions.
    — Mike Stubbs, Forbes.com, 26 May 2026
Definition of qualifiers
Noun
  • The database entries do not list any citations or penalties on the inspection-detail pages.
    — Kansas City Star, Kansas City Star, 23 July 2026
  • The charter system was created to generate immediate value for NTT IndyCar Series team owners and their entries and is expected to grow over time as the sport continues its upward trajectory.
    — Bruce Martin, Forbes.com, 22 July 2026
Definition of entries
Noun
  • Authorities arrested presidential candidates, opposition figures, business leaders and journalists ahead of that vote as the government intensified its criminalization of dissent.
    — Landon Mion, FOXNews.com, 21 July 2026
  • Thank you for the analysis and recommendations of the candidates for judges on our ballots.
    — Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 20 July 2026
Definition of candidates
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

dark horse
dark horses
darkish
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Dark horses.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dark%20horses. Accessed 24 Jul. 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 itinerant

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?

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

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

Do you 'say your piece' or 'say your peace'?

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

The Words of the Week - Jul 24

Why do we say 'fly off the handle'?
See More

Popular

See More

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List
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
chain-question-mark
Missing Link Quiz July 2026 Five seconds to figure out the word that fits bot...
See All