pit bull

noun

1

or pit bull terrier : a muscular, short-haired, stocky dog (such as an American pit bull terrier or American Staffordshire terrier) of any of several breeds or a hybrid with one or more of these breeds that was originally developed for fighting and is noted for strength, stamina, and tenacity

2

: an aggressive and tenacious person

Synonyms

• barracuda
• fire-breather
• fire-eater
• tiger

Examples of pit bull in a Sentence

a pit bull who won't let anyone stand in her way to the top of the corporate ladder

Recent Examples on the Web

The second horrific injury of the week belongs to Carl Gates, a patient at the hospital who swears his pit bull mauled him but whose gruesome claw marks recall Griffin Dunne in An American Werewolf in London. —Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 1 Sep. 2024

Zupan, 25, first spotted the striking pit bull and American bulldog mix with different-colored eyes—one brown, one blue—on the Facebook page of a fellow Cincinnati Animal CARE volunteer in November 2022. —Kelli Bender, People.com, 16 Oct. 2024

Three people are all pit bulls fighting for honesty, transparency and victory. —Robert Costa, CBS News, 6 Oct. 2024

Ram, 22, now makes outfits for all of her pets, which include black cat Azuki and pit bull Asahi (plus camera-shy cat Ash). —Kate Hogan, Peoplemag, 17 Aug. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1927, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

pit bull

noun

: a dog of any of several breeds originally developed for fighting and noted for strength and stamina