pit bull
nounDefinition of pit bull
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
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Synonyms & Antonyms for pit bull
Synonyms
barracuda, fire-breather, fire-eater, tiger
Antonyms
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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
On a recent evening, a pit bull was roaming among piles of trash. — Sarah Ravani, SFChronicle.com, "Oakland councilman wants to close street near Home Depot where RV dwellers live," 1 July 2019 The beagles are 5 years old now, and their jaws have a hint of pit bull. — Jon Cohen, Science | AAAS, "China’s CRISPR push in animals promises better meat, novel therapies, and pig organs for people," 31 July 2019 According to the shelter, the pit bull has been impounded. — Dave Quinn, PEOPLE.com, "Connecticut Dog Owner Abandons 'Amazing' Pit Bull with Note Explaining They Couldn't Keep Her," 30 July 2019 The Watsonville Register-Pajaronian reported that a pit bull that was trapped inside the car was safely removed by rescuers. — Bay City News, The Mercury News, "Santa Cruz Mountains: Boy, 12, dies when underage driver crashes stolen car," 26 June 2019 All adoption fees are waived for cats older than 6 months, large dogs, pit bulls and the oldest pets at the shelter. — Kate Talerico, The Courier-Journal, "City breaks ground on 'no kill' animal shelter slated to open in mid-2019," 5 July 2018 The Hoovers advertised the Bath Buddy in a video that featured their own two pit bull terriers. — Hannah Lang, charlotteobserver, "SC dogs become celebrities after 10 million watch their adorable bath time video," 30 May 2018 The department believes Kano is the first pit bull to work in such a role in Kansas. — star-telegram, "A Texas group trained this dog. Now he's a police detective | Fort Worth Star-Telegram," 15 Dec. 2017 Turnspits were short and stocky, with the head of a pit bull and the body of a basset hound. — Andrew Amelinckx, Smithsonian, "Four Weird Ways Dogs Have Earned Their Keep," 19 Sep. 2017These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'pit bull.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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