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  1. dark horse love

Definitions

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition

  1. n. One who achieves unexpected support and success as a political candidate, typically during a party's convention.
  2. n. A little-known, unexpectedly successful entrant, as in a horserace.

Wiktionary

  1. n. idiomatic, politics A candidate who is nominated unexpectedly, without previously having been discussed or considered as a likely choice.
  2. n. rare An unexpected success.

WordNet 3.0

  1. n. a political candidate who is not well known but could win unexpectedly
  2. n. a racehorse about which little is known

Etymologies

  1. Originally an allusion to an unknown horse winning a race, as used in an 1831 novel The Young Duke by Benjamin Disraeli. (Wiktionary)

Examples

  • “Curley’s old mouth pouted contemptuously as she considered them: John with his irascibility, his pomposity and his moments of sheer obstinacy; Paul lathering and shouting and making an exhibition of himself; and now the dark horse Mike, who had never really wanted anything before.”

    Flowers for the Judge

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hypernyms (6)

Words that are more generic or abstract

  1. campaigner
  1. candidate
  1. nominee
  1. race horse
  1. racehorse
  1. bangtail

reverse dictionary (12)

Words that contain this word in their definition

  1. morel
  2. mule-mark
  1. hippopotamus
  2. liver chestnut
  1. buckskin
  2. chestnut
  1. stocking
  2. zain
  1. all
  2. suckerel
  1. maharif
  2. sordaria

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‘dark horse’ has been looked up 1266 times, added to 13 lists, and is not a valid Scrabble word.