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View synonyms for hound

hound

1

[ hound ]

noun

  1. one of any of several breeds of dogs trained to pursue game either by sight or by scent, especially one with a long face and large drooping ears.
  2. Informal. any dog.
  3. Slang.
    1. an unpleasant, mean, or despicable person.
    2. a man who chases women; a promiscuous man.
  4. Informal. an ardent fan or devotee:

    an autograph hound.

  5. one of the pursuers in the game of hare and hounds.


verb (used with object)

  1. to hunt or track with hounds, or as a hound does; pursue.

    Synonyms: tail, trail, chase, follow, dog

  2. to pursue or harass without respite:

    Her little brother wouldn't stop hounding her.

    Synonyms: bully, persecute, annoy, pester

  3. to incite (a hound) to pursuit or attack; urge on.
  4. Informal. to incite or urge (a person) to do something (often followed by on ):

    The committee has been hounded on by those who want these repairs done immediately.

hound

2

[ hound ]

noun

  1. Nautical. either of a pair of fore-and-aft members at the lower end of the head of a mast, for supporting the trestletrees, that support an upper mast at its heel. Compare cheek ( def 12 ).
  2. a horizontal bar or brace, usually one of a pair, for strengthening the running gear of a horse-drawn wagon or the like.

hound

1

/ haʊnd /

noun

  1. either of a pair of horizontal bars that reinforce the running gear of a horse-drawn vehicle
  2. nautical either of a pair of fore-and-aft braces that serve as supports for a topmast
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012


hound

2

/ haʊnd /

noun

    1. any of several breeds of dog used for hunting
    2. ( in combination )

      an otterhound

      a deerhound

  1. the hounds
    a pack of foxhounds, etc
  2. a dog, esp one regarded as annoying
  3. a despicable person
  4. (in hare and hounds) a runner who pursues a hare
  5. slang.
    an enthusiast

    an autograph hound

  6. short for houndfish See also nursehound
  7. ride to hounds or follow the hounds
    to take part in a fox hunt with hounds
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

verb

  1. to pursue or chase relentlessly
  2. to urge on
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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Derived Forms

  • ˈhounder, noun
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Other Words From

  • hound·er noun
  • hound·ish hound·y adjective
  • hound·like adjective
  • un·hound·ed adjective
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Word History and Origins

Origin of hound1

First recorded before 900; Middle English h(o)und, Old English hund; cognate with Dutch hond, Old Norse hundr, Danish, Swedish hund, German Hund, Gothic hunds; akin to Latin canis, Greek kýōn (genitive kynós ), Sanskrit śván (genitive śunas ), Old Irish (genitive con ), Welsh ci (plural cwn ), Tocharian A kū, Lithuanian šuõ

Origin of hound2

First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English houn(e), hune, from Old Norse hūnn “knob at the top of a masthead”
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Word History and Origins

Origin of hound1

C15: of Scandinavian origin; related to Old Norse hūnn knob, cube

Origin of hound2

Old English hund; related to Old High German hunt, Old Norse hundr, Gothic hunds
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Idioms and Phrases

Idioms
  1. follow the hounds, Fox Hunting. to participate in a hunt, especially as a member of the field.
  2. ride to hounds, Fox Hunting. to participate in a hunt, whether as a member of the field or of the hunt staff.

More idioms and phrases containing hound

see run with (the hare, hunt with the hounds) .
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Example Sentences

The Hound is begging her to kill him, but she won't grant him his last wish.

Sandor “The Hound” Clegane was left to die of a ferocious ass-whooping.

In the end, the joke was on both of them: Brienne lost track of Arya and The Hound was “killed by a woman.”

But The Hound is just hungry, and no one gets between the scarred warrior and a meal.

At the end of the fourth season premiere, Arya and The Hound stumble upon a tavern in the woods.

He frowned, and bent his head, and his long hair fell over his face, while the poor Stuttgardter sat there like a beaten hound.

Death comes in, the bread at the feast turns black, the hound falls down—and so on.

As they entered, a liver-coloured hound that lay stretched before the fire growled lazily, and showed the whites of his eyes.

Presently he heard the deep baying of the hound, and soon the enemy appeared, under a bright moon.

I called to him loudly, in the vain hope he might look back, as though at a time like this a hound would turn from the trail.

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.

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