noun
1. a political candidate who is not well known but could win unexpectedly
• Hypernyms: ↑campaigner, ↑candidate, ↑nominee
2. a racehorse about which little is known
• Hypernyms: ↑racehorse, ↑race horse, ↑bangtail
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dark horse,
1. an unexpected winner about whom little is known.
2. a person who is unexpectedly nominated for a political office: »
Dark horses in both parties were bobbing up everywhere (Newsweek).
╂[< the practice of altering a horse's color in order to mask its identity]
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n.
1) a person about whom little is known, esp. someone whose abilities and potential for success are concealed
[as adj.]
a dark-horse candidate2) a competitor or candidate who has little chance of winning, or who wins against expectations
a preseason dark horse as the nation's top collegiate football team
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Origin:
early 19th cent.: originally racing slang
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noun, pl ⋯ -es [count]
1 : a person (such as a politician), animal, or thing that competes in a race or other contest and is not expected to win
The Democrat from Utah has gone from being a dark horse to the front-runner in the campaign for President.
The movie is a dark horse for the award.
2 Brit : a person who has interesting qualities or abilities that most people do not know about
He is a dark horse, but I did find out that he once played football professionally.
Useful english dictionary. 2012.