Portuguese water dog

American

noun

one of a breed of medium-sized dogs originally developed to assist Portuguese fishermen and having a profuse black or brown coat with or without white markings and webbed feet.

Portuguese water dog British

noun

a robust dog of a Portuguese breed that has a wavy coat, often with the hindquarters and tail clipped, and is an excellent swimmer and diver

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Sonny, the star Portuguese water dog, went nosing around for a girlfriend when he was supposed to be attending to press obligations in the Long Island living room of his professional dog-show handler, Kimberly Calvacca.

From The Wall Street Journal

Among the other participants: a Portuguese water dog named Avery, a goldendoodle named Nittany and an Australian shepherd named Emmy.

From Seattle Times

Books have also been written about President Barack Obama’s white-chested Portuguese water dog, Bo.

From Seattle Times

Then, if we don’t have an early game, I usually like taking the boys and the dogs — I have two dogs, a standard poodle and a Portuguese water dog — for a hike.

From Los Angeles Times

In 2009, President Obama famously adopted a Portuguese Water Dog, Bo, because its reputation as a hypoallergenic breed meant it would accommodate his allergic daughter Malia.

From Salon

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023