hound

1 of 2

noun

1
a
: dog
b
: a dog of any of numerous hunting breeds including both scent hounds (such as the bloodhound and beagle) and sight hounds (such as the greyhound and Afghan hound)
2
: a mean or despicable person
3
4
: a person who pursues like a hound
especially : one who avidly seeks or collects something
autograph hounds

hound

2 of 2

verb

hounded; hounding; hounds

transitive verb

1
: to pursue with or as if with hounds
2
: to drive or affect by persistent harassing
hounder noun
Choose the Right Synonym for hound

bait, badger, heckle, hector, chivy, hound mean to harass by efforts to break down.

bait implies wanton cruelty or delight in persecuting a helpless victim.

baited the chained dog

badger implies pestering so as to drive a person to confusion or frenzy.

badgered her father for a car

heckle implies persistent annoying or belligerent interruptions of a speaker.

drunks heckled the stand-up comic

hector carries an implication of bullying and domineering.

football players hectored by their coach

chivy suggests persecution by teasing or nagging.

chivied the new student mercilessly

hound implies unrelenting pursuit and harassing.

hounded by creditors

Example Sentences

Noun in the yard an old hound greeted us with a single bark a camera hound even before the baby arrived, he's now become obsessive Verb He is being hounded by the press. They hounded me with questions. They hounded me for my autograph. hound a politician out of office See More
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
The 3-year-old Catahoula/hound mix is a shelter dog turned firefighter whose story starts in 2021 when she was dropped off at a Louisiana animal rescue. Kelli Bender, Peoplemag, 20 Oct. 2022 After the mechanic assured the author that the dog didn't bite, King reached out to pet the hound, only for Bowser to attack him. Clark Collis, EW.com, 30 Sep. 2022 In the show, Prioress is a sort of hound for the Watch. ELLE, 29 July 2022 Our rescue hound takes prescription medications to manage an autoimmune skin disease triggered by a May splenectomy. Stacey Lastoe, Washington Post, 8 Sep. 2022 Animal: Maude, 1-year-old, 65-pound, female hound mix. San Diego Union-Tribune, 22 Aug. 2022 Chase is finally in his forever home! Until recently, Chase — a nine-year-old, Rhodesian ridgeback/hound mix — had lived at Furry Friends Adoption, Clinic and Ranch in Palm City, Florida, for all but one year of his life. Linda Marx, PEOPLE.com, 1 Aug. 2022 One patron wore red and yellow suspenders; another brought a Basset hound in a hot dog costume. Nicole Kagan, Los Angeles Times, 20 July 2022 The fifth installment of the Air Buddies franchise follows the Buddies on a quest to stop Warwick the Warlock from unleashing the no-good hound ghosts in their town. Cameron Jenkins, Good Housekeeping, 19 July 2022
Verb
McCarthy once predicted a landslide of as many as 60 Republican seats, with which the party promised to hound the Biden Administration. Molly Ball, Time, 9 Nov. 2022 Crime and fare evasion complaints continue to hound Metro, problems that Clarke said riders often discuss with him. Justin George, Washington Post, 22 Sep. 2022 Such historical baggage and antagonism stand to hound Mr. Marcos Jr. during a six-year presidency beginning at a time of intense crises. Jim Gomez, The Christian Science Monitor, 30 June 2022 After every game, reporters would hound him and goad him; under the pressure, Maris lost clumps of hair, or so the legend goes. Louisa Thomas, The New Yorker, 5 Oct. 2022 Drones and robot dogs prowl residential compounds to hound those who don’t comply with isolation rules. Josh Chin, WSJ, 2 Sep. 2022 After one of his two first-quarter 3-pointers, Curry screamed into the crowd full of Boston Celtics fans who had showed up early to hound him and his teammates. New York Times, 11 June 2022 Authoritarian governments have abused the system in the past to hound opponents and limit their freedom of movement. The Editorial Board, WSJ, 10 Feb. 2022 Admins who don't want this will have to hound each individual user to shut it off. Ron Amadeo, Ars Technica, 2 Feb. 2022 See More

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'hound.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English, from Old English hund; akin to Old High German hunt dog, Latin canis, Greek kyōn

First Known Use

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

1528, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of hound was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near hound

Cite this Entry

“Hound.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hound. Accessed 7 Dec. 2022.

Kids Definition

hound

1 of 2 noun
1
2
: a dog of any of various hunting breeds having large drooping ears and a deep voice and following their prey by scent or sight

hound

2 of 2 verb
: to pursue with or as if with hounds

More from Merriam-Webster on hound

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