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Since You Asked Race track, Disraeli spur 'dark horse' What's the origin of the term "dark horse?" - G. Lewis, Ashland If you analyze the word, old chap, you may discern that it got its start in English horseracing circles. The term, still used at the track, crept into our language in the early 1800s. It refers to a horse that is unknown or whose qualities are concealed (thus "dark") but has a good chance of winning. According to "The Dictionary of Clichés," the word first appeared in print in "The Young Duke," written by Benjamin Disraeli in 1831. A dark horse himself at the time, Disraeli later went on to become prime minister of England. The immortal lines that set this word on its merry course through the English language go thusly: "A dark horse, which had never been thought of...rushed past the grand stand in sweeping triumphs."
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