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horse Definition

horse (hôrs)

noun pl. hors′es or horse

  1. a domesticated or wild, perissodactylous mammal (Equus caballus), raised in many breeds, having a large body and head, four usually long, thin legs, and a long, flowing tail: horses have been ridden, used to pull loads, etc. since ancient times
  2. the full-grown male of the horse; gelding or stallion
  3. anything like a horse in that a person sits, rides, or is carried on it
  4. a device, esp. a frame with legs, to support something; specif.,
    1. sawhorse
    2. a clotheshorse
  5. a man regarded as resembling a horse, as in having great strength or endurance: sometimes used as a general term of address
  6. Chess, Informal a knight
  7. ☆ Informal pony (sense )
  8. Slang
    1. horsepower (sense )
    2. horsepower (sense )
    3. ☆ heroin
  9. Gym. a padded block on legs, used for vaulting events
  10. Mil., Brit. mounted troops; cavalry
  11. Mining a mass of earth or rock inside a vein or coal seam

Etymology: ME hors < OE hors, hros, akin to Ger ross (OHG hros), prob. < IE base *(s)ker-, to leap (or < ? *ers-, to run > L cursus)

transitive verb horsed, hors′·ing

  1. to supply with a horse or horses; put on horseback
    1. to place on a man's back or a wooden horse for flogging
    2. to flog
  3. Informal to shove; push
  4. ☆ Slang to subject to horseplay

intransitive verb

to mount or go on horseback

adjective

  1. of a horse or horses
  2. mounted on horses
  3. large, strong, or coarse of its kind horse mackerel

horse Idioms

back the wrong horse

☆
  1. to bet on a horse that loses the race
  2. to choose or support the losing side

beat a dead horse

or flog a dead horse

Informal to argue an issue that is already settled

from the horse's mouth

Informal from the original or authoritative source of information

hold one's horses

☆

Slang to curb one's impatience

horse around

☆ Slang
  1. to engage in horseplay
  2. to spend time in pointless or trifling activity

horse of another color

or horse of a different color

an entirely different matter

on one's high horse

Informal acting in an arrogant, haughty, or disdainful manner

to horse!

get on your horse!mount!

horse Synonyms

horse

n.

  1. A domestic animal

    nag, draft animal, plow horse, racer, saddlehorse, steed, mount, charger, stallion, gelding, hack, mare, dobbin, roadster, palfrey, pad, thoroughbred, pacer, trotter, cob, hunter, courser, posthorse, piebald, calico pony, equine, quadruped, Pferd (German), cheval (French), caballo (Spanish); see also animal, pony.

    Breeds and types of horses include: Clydesdale, Shire, Belgian, Galloway, Shetland, Lipizzaner, Waler, Percheron, Appaloosa, French coach, Morgan, Suffolk, Hackney, Ardennes, Hanoverian, Flemish, Arabian, Thoroughbred, quarter horse, Barbary, barb, mustang, bronco, pinto, palomino, Hambletonian.

  2. An upright structure

    trestle, support, bench, stage, scaffold, easel, tripod, bolster, clotheshorse, sawhorse, vaulting block.

back the wrong horse

support the losing side, pick the loser, misjudge; see lose 3.

beat <strong>or </strong>flog a dead horse*

argue an issue that is already settled, nag, harp on; see overdo 1.

from the horse's mouth*

originally, from an authority, according to the source of the information; see officially 1.

hold one's horses*

curb one's impatience, slow down, relax; see restrain 1.

on one's high horse*

arrogant, haughty, disdainful; see egotistic 2.

horse Usage Examples

Converse of object

  • ride: Through towering hills proud men shall ride No horse or ass move by his side.
  • draw: The family will also get to see rural Cambodia, with a horse drawn buggy ride through pretty countryside.
  • flog: The means-tested CTB system has been a failure but they appear determined to keep flogging this dead horse.
  • rock: Rocking horse lovers in Lincolnshire admire rocking horses from our rocking horse maker for Lincolnshire.

Converse of subject

trample: The crossbowmen were cut down, and then trampled by the horses of the men-at-arms, whilst those soldiers behind continued to move forward.

Adjective modifier

  • wild: His name is very strange... The kanji for " Ranma " translates to " wild horse " .
  • white: This white horse once had an unusual feature, a glass eye.

Modifies a noun

  • riding: The British love sport: football, golf, cricket, rugby, horse riding, tennis, bowls.
  • racing: I would say they are into horse racing, of which betting is part of the whole package.
  • rider: We often have horse riders riding two abreast on narrow roads refusing to move into a single file.
  • chestnut: How did horse chestnuts help the war effort during the First World War?
  • manure: Each year he had a delivery of horse manure.
  • race: Sorry, To view a LIVE horse race you must be logged into your Victor Chandler account.

Noun used with modifier

  • shire: He also he went on to become a judge at local and national shire horse competitions.
  • dressage: It includes lectures on how to feed your dressage horse, being fit for the job and general stable management.
  • pantomime: Further rumors of indecent obsessions with pantomime horses have yet to be corroborated.
  • draft: Big, fine draft horse, some of them very valuable, were brought into a ring surrounded by men from far and near.

Possessives

  • hoof: Fritsch paints him red and gives him a horse's hoof, like the Devil himself.
  • mouth: However, Dr. Robert Cook has suggested that the pressure of the bit in the horse's mouth might directly cause this neuralgia.
  • bridle: Ewan caught sight of the barbarian's look of righteous wrath and hastily grabbed his horse's bridle.