horse
[ hawrs ]
/ hɔrs /
noun, plural hors·es, (especially collectively) horse.
a large, solid-hoofed, herbivorous quadruped, Equus caballus, domesticated since prehistoric times, bred in a number of varieties, and used for carrying or pulling loads, for riding, and for racing.
a fully mature male animal of this type; stallion.
any of several odd-toed ungulates belonging to the family Equidae, including the horse, zebra, donkey, and ass, having a thick, flat coat with a narrow mane along the back of the neck and bearing the weight on only one functioning digit, the third, which is widened into a round or spade-shaped hoof.
something on which a person rides, sits, or exercises, as if astride the back of such an animal: rocking horse.
Also called trestle.
a frame, block, etc., with legs, on which something is mounted or supported.
Gymnastics.
Carpentry.
carriage(def 7).
soldiers serving on horseback; cavalry: a thousand horse.
Slang.
a man; fellow.
Often horses. Informal.
horsepower.
horses, Slang.
the power or capacity to accomplish something, as by having enough money, personnel, or expertise: Our small company doesn't have the horses to compete against a giant corporation.
Chess Informal.
a knight.
Slang.
a crib, translation, or other illicit aid to a student's recitation; trot; pony.
Mining.
a mass of rock enclosed within a lode or vein.
Nautical.
traveler(def 6b).
Shipbuilding.
a mold of a curved frame, especially one used when the complexity of the curves requires laying out at full size.
Slang.
heroin.
verb (used with object), horsed, hors·ing.
to provide with a horse or horses.
to set on horseback.
to set or carry on a person's back or on one's own back.
Carpentry.
to cut notches for steps into (a carriage beam).
to move with great physical effort or force: It took three men to horse the trunk up the stairs.
Slang.
- to make (a person) the target of boisterous jokes.
- to perform boisterously, as a part or a scene in a play.
Nautical.
- to caulk (a vessel) with a hammer.
- to work or haze (a sailor) cruelly or unfairly.
Archaic.
to place (someone) on a person's back, in order to be flogged.
verb (used without object), horsed, hors·ing.
to mount or go on a horse.
(of a mare) to be in heat.
Vulgar.
to have coitus.
adjective
of, for, or pertaining to a horse or horses: the horse family; a horse blanket.
drawn or powered by a horse or horses.
mounted or serving on horses: horse troops.
unusually large.
Verb Phrases
horse around, Slang.
to fool around; indulge in horseplay.
Idioms for horse
back the wrong horse,
to be mistaken in judgment, especially in backing a losing candidate.
beat/flog a dead horse,
to attempt to revive a discussion, topic, or idea that has waned, been exhausted, or proved fruitless.
from the horse's mouth, Informal.
on good authority; from the original or a trustworthy source: I have it straight from the horse's mouth that the boss is retiring.
hold one's horses, Informal.
to check one's impulsiveness; be patient or calm: Hold your horses! I'm almost ready.
horse of another color,
something entirely different.
Also horse of a different color.
look a gift horse in the mouth,
to be critical of a gift.
To horse!
Mount your horse! Ride!
Origin of horse
before 900; (noun) Middle English, Old English
hors; cognate with Old Norse
hross, Dutch
ros, German
Ross (Middle High German
ros, Old High German
hros); (v.) Middle English
horsen to provide with horses, Old English
horsian, derivative of the noun
OTHER WORDS FROM horse
horse·less, adjective horse·like, adjective un·der·horse, verb (used with object), un·der·horsed, un·der·hors·ing.WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH horse
hoarse horseWords nearby horse
Example sentences from the Web for horses
In place of horses, underclassmen would pull the field pieces around the drill ground.
You have to have courage and endurance, like certain kinds of horses [laughs].
All Eyes on Anjelica Huston: The Legendary Actress on Love, Abuse, and Jack Nicholson |Alex Suskind |November 10, 2014 |DAILY BEASTBut before the national pundits and prognosticators write off the Kentucky contest, they should hold their horses.
Those Alison Lundergan Grimes Obituaries Were Premature—She’s Hanging On |Jonathan Miller |October 23, 2014 |DAILY BEASTIt surpasses the paintings of horses and rhinoceros from the Chauvet Cave in France by 400 years.
On Sark, horses and carts and feudal traditions still remain strong.
I turned my eyes in the direction I expected to see the horses.
Snow Shoes and Canoes |William H. G. KingstonOne mile from New Harmony, we were forced to alight from the carriage, as the horses would not draw us up a steep hill.
Travels Through North America, v. 1-2 |Berhard Saxe-Weimar EisenachPresents of horses, blankets and other valuables were sent to the father of the young woman.
Legends of The Kaw |Carrie de VoeOn a peg just inside the door of the ranchman's old wine shed hung one of the horses' unused nosebags.
A-Birding on a Bronco |Florence A. MerriamThe two horses, instinctively drawing close together, turned their tails to the driving flakes.
Two on the Trail |Hulbert Footner
British Dictionary definitions for horses
horse
/ (hɔːs) /
noun
a domesticated perissodactyl mammal, Equus caballus, used for draught work and riding: family Equidae
Related adjective: equine
the adult male of this species; stallion
wild horse
- a horse (Equus caballus) that has become feral
- another name for Przewalski's horse
- any other member of the family Equidae, such as the zebra or ass
- (as modifier)the horse family
(functioning as plural)
horsemen, esp cavalry
a regiment of horse
short for Baja California Norte
a narrow board supported by a pair of legs at each end, used as a frame for sawing or as a trestle, barrier, etc
a contrivance on which a person may ride and exercise
a slang word for heroin
mining
a mass of rock within a vein of ore
nautical
a rod, rope, or cable, fixed at the ends, along which something may slide by means of a thimble, shackle, or other fitting; traveller
chess an informal name for knight
informal short for horsepower
(modifier)
drawn by a horse or horses
a horse cart
a horse of another colour or a horse of a different colour
a completely different topic, argument, etc
be on one's high horse or get on one's high horse informal
to be disdainfully aloof
flog a dead horse See flog (def. 6)
hold one's horses
to hold back; restrain oneself
horses for courses
a policy, course of action, etc modified slightly to take account of specific circumstances without departing in essentials from the original
the horse's mouth
the most reliable source
to horse!
an order to mount horses
verb
(tr)
to provide with a horse or horses
to put or be put on horseback
(tr)
to move (something heavy) into position by sheer physical strength
Derived forms of horse
horseless, adjective horselike, adjectiveWord Origin for horse
Old English
hors; related to Old Frisian
hors, Old High German
hros, Old Norse
hross
Idioms and Phrases with horses
horse
In addition to the idioms beginning with horse
- horse around
- horse of a different color, a
- horse sense
- horse trading
also see:
- back the wrong horse
- beat a dead horse
- cart before the horse
- change horses in midstream
- charley horse
- dark horse
- eat like a bird (horse)
- from the horse's mouth
- hold one's horses
- if wishes were horses
- look a gift horse in the mouth
- on one's high horse
- war horse
- wild horses couldn't drag
- work like a beaver (horse)
- you can lead a horse to water