underdog

noun

un·​der·​dog ˈən-dər-ˌdȯg 

1

: a loser or predicted loser in a struggle or contest

… the biggest obstacle has been the adjustment from underdog last season to contender …

—Mike Wise

2

: a victim of injustice or persecution

… portrayed himself as an honest underdog that the Government would do anything to stop.

—Michael Specter

Examples of underdog in a Sentence

I always root for the underdog instead of the favorite.

As a lawyer, she consistently represented the underdog.

Recent Examples on the Web

An early home test against a scrappy underdog can be an important wake-up call before Missouri faces surging Mississippi State to start SEC play. — Pj Green september 20, Kansas City Star, 20 Sep. 2026

While the Dolphins came into Sunday’s game as the biggest underdog of the week to the 49ers, an aged and experienced football team led by coach Kyle Shanahan, who is one of Hafley’s mentors, there should have been more fight from this team. — Omar Kelly, Miami Herald, 20 Sep. 2026

The best Canadian Discovery Award went to Cody Lightning for Smudge The Blades, an indigenous underdog hockey team drama. — Etan Vlessing, HollywoodReporter, 20 Sep. 2026

The Commanders lost in Week 1 at Philadelphia by 2 points, and travel to Texas as the decisive underdog against the Cowboys. — Mac Engel, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 19 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1859, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for underdog

• analog
• analogue
• catalogue
• decalogue
• demagogue
• dialogue
• epilogue
• homologue
• monologue
• pedagogue
• synagogue
• tagalog

Kids Definition

underdog

noun

un·​der·​dog ˈən-dər-ˌdȯg 

: the loser or predicted loser in a struggle