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
The Penguin, for control over Gotham City's criminal underbelly in this HBO Max series.
—
Carson Blackwelder, PEOPLE, 15 Sep. 2025
The hypothesis is that these planets eventually lose the ability to sequester planet-warming greenhouse gases in their geologic underbelly.
—Quanta Magazine, 15 Sep. 2025
Tyler Perry's gone full sicko mode with Beauty in Black, a soapy thriller about an exotic dancer who infiltrates the lives of the Bellarie beauty dynasty and disrupts its connections to a seedy criminal underbelly.
—Randall Colburn, Entertainment Weekly, 11 Sep. 2025
Westman had decorated the assault rifle and shotgun with hate speech in ways that aligned with the dark underbelly of alt-right meme culture that regularly disparages people of color, Jewish people, the LGBTQ+, and people with disabilities.
—Natalie Eilbert, jsonline.com, 29 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for underbelly
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Carson Blackwelder, PEOPLE, 15 Sep. 2025
The hypothesis is that these planets eventually lose the ability to sequester planet-warming greenhouse gases in their geologic underbelly.
—Quanta Magazine, 15 Sep. 2025
Tyler Perry's gone full sicko mode with Beauty in Black, a soapy thriller about an exotic dancer who infiltrates the lives of the Bellarie beauty dynasty and disrupts its connections to a seedy criminal underbelly.
—Randall Colburn, Entertainment Weekly, 11 Sep. 2025
Westman had decorated the assault rifle and shotgun with hate speech in ways that aligned with the dark underbelly of alt-right meme culture that regularly disparages people of color, Jewish people, the LGBTQ+, and people with disabilities.
—Natalie Eilbert, jsonline.com, 29 Aug. 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 18 Sep. 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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