dark horse
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dark horse
Where it comes from
Originally an allusion to an unknown horse with a dark coat winning a race, as used in the 1831 novel The Young Duke by Benjamin Disraeli (1804–1881).
noun dark horses
- Someone who possesses talents or favorable characteristics that are not known or expected by others. ‘She’s a dark horse,’ he said. ‘She knows just as much about climbing mountains as you or I. In fact, she was ahead of me the whole time, and I lost her.’
- A candidate for an election who is nominated unexpectedly, without previously having been discussed or considered as a likely choice. That left Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, 69 — a quiet American dark horse who had, surprisingly, emerged in the evening’s vote — as a source of particular interest.
- A horse whose capabilities are not known.
- Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see dark, horse.
Translations
Every language
noun possessor of unexpected talents or favorable characteristics
| Español | tapado |
|---|---|
| 中文 | 黑馬 /黑马 hēimǎ |
| हिन्दी | छिपा रुस्तम chipā rustam, काला चोर kālā cor |
| Italiano | acqua cheta, cavallo nero |
| Ελληνικά | σιγανό ποτάμι siganó potámi |
| Русский | тёмная лоша́дка tjómnaja lošádka |
Talk about this word "dark horse." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/dark%20horse. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. dark horse. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/dark%20horse "dark horse." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/dark%20horse.Cite this
@misc{dark_horse_2026,
title = {dark horse},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/dark%20horse},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
