Bulldog: A Breed Named for a Cruel Sport It No Longer Does
A bulldog is a stocky short-faced dog. The name records bull-baiting, the blood sport it was bred for and which Britain banned in 1835.
The bulldog is a heavy, wide-chested dog with a flattened muzzle and a rolling walk. Its name is a plain record of its original job: gripping a tethered bull by the nose in the baiting pits.
- A stocky short-faced dog breed. *An English bulldog.*
- A determined person (figurative). *He has a bulldog approach to negotiation.*
- Stubbornly persistent (adjective). *Bulldog tenacity.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | bulldog | A French bulldog. |
| Plural | bulldogs | Two bulldogs. |
| Attributive | bulldog spirit | Bulldog spirit in defeat. |
| Compound | bulldog clip | Hold it with a bulldog clip. |
| Related | mastiff | Descended from mastiff stock. |
How it is used in a sentence
- The bulldog snored through the whole film.Short-faced breeds are famously noisy sleepers.
- She showed real bulldog determination.The figurative sense — refusing to let go.
- Clip the pages together with a bulldog clip.Named for its strong bite-like grip.
From baiting pit to lap
- Bred in Britain for bull-baiting, a spectacle in which dogs attacked a tethered bull
- Parliament banned the sport in the Cruelty to Animals Act of 1835
- Breeders then selected for temperament, and the modern dog is famously placid
- The flattened face that made the grip possible now causes breathing problems, a live welfare debate
The word is recorded from the seventeenth century. The figurative use — stubborn, unwilling to let go — came from the same grip, and became a national self-image in Britain during the twentieth century.
Is a French bulldog the same breed?
No. It is a separate, smaller breed developed in France from bulldog stock brought over by English lace workers.
Why is a strong paper clip called a bulldog clip?
Because of the grip. The name transferred from the dog's famous refusal to release its hold.