hangdog

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

“The Lowdown” tames Lee’s mania for his cause through the barely obscured current of hangdog defeat weakly powering his personal life.

From Salon • Sep. 23, 2025

“Please, don’t make me talk so much,” he said recently, in a low register, his hangdog eyes pleading with the universe.

From New York Times • Jan. 7, 2024

As a detective, he’s a superhero, with keen powers of observation, but as a person, he’s the hangdog underdog, the little guy, upon whom his foes look with disdain.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 7, 2023

Finn Russell looked hangdog - and that takes some doing.

From BBC • Sep. 9, 2023

Muggles bustled past wearing the hangdog expressions of early morning, quite unconscious of the little inn’s existence.

From "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" by J.K. Rowling