Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

alpha-dog

Word Rarity Uncommon

Frequency: 4.19 in modern English

Syllables: al-pha--dog
IPA

15

Scrabble Score

8

Letters

4

Syllables

7

Unique Chars

Meaning

verb

To behave like an alpha dog; to behave in a crassly dominant manner, especially at the expense of another male.

American usage; Informal

Example Sentences

"At the left was Mr. Trump, the volatile presence who alpha-dogged a season of Republican debates. Now he grimaced, squinted, nodded, pursed his lips, sniffed, huffed and interrupted, becoming, over the night, an agitated man in a box."
"Stormy boasts that she has “grown balls”. Given her “alpha-dogging” of Trump and her jokes about his furry sporran, who knows whether this is more than a metaphor?"
"Harper Spiller (Aubrey Plaza): And I don't know, I guess, I just don't want him rubbing off on you. You know, and I don't like the way he alpha-dogs you. Ethan Spiller (Will Sharpe): He doesn't alpha-dog me. I mean, he kind of used to, I guess, but it's different now."

Usage

American usage
Informal

Inflected Forms

alpha-dogs (present, singular) alpha-dogging (participle, present) alpha-dogged (participle, past) alpha-dogged (past)

Questions

What does alpha-dog mean?: To behave like an alpha dog; to behave in a crassly dominant manner, especially at the expense of another male.

How to pronounce alpha-dog

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