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

A four-star review from The Telegraph praised McKellen, and said his performance "stirs the soul" as he plunges "from sackswilling, swaggering cheer to hangdog melancholy".

From BBC • Apr. 12, 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

And again, Sandler channels a hangdog torpor, almost a melancholic air, in a performance that bristles with comic realism.

From New York Times • Mar. 31, 2023

Or do they call you ‘Snitch’?” “1 just go by ‘Floyd,’” Wells repeated, rather hangdog.

From "In Cold Blood" by Truman Capote