Horse

/hɔːs/ · noun

Meaning

A hoofed mammal, Equus ferus caballus, often used throughout history for riding and draft work..

Definitions by Sense

1. A hoofed mammal, Equus ferus caballus, often used throughout history for riding and draft work.
2. Equipment with legs.
3. (nautical) A type of equipment.
4. (mining) A mass of earthy matter, or rock of the same character as the wall rock, occurring in the course of a vein, as of coal or ore; hence, to take horse (said of a vein) is to divide into branches for a distance.
5. (US) An informal variant of basketball in which players match shots made by their opponent(s), each miss adding a letter to the word "horse", with 5 misses spelling the whole word and eliminating a player, until only the winner is left. Also HORSE, H-O-R-S-E or H.O.R.S.E. (see H-O-R-S-E on WikipediaWikipedia ).
6. (uncountable) The flesh of a horse as an item of cuisine.
7. (prison slang) A prison guard who smuggles contraband in or out for prisoners.
8. (dated, slang, among students) A translation or other illegitimate aid in study or examination.

Example Sentences

A cowboy's greatest friend is his horse.

She loved taming horses on Saturday.

A grain, which in England is generally given to horſes, but which in Scotland ſupports the people.

Athelstan Arundel walked home[…], foaming and raging. […] He walked the whole way, walking through crowds, and under the noses of dray-horses, carriage-horses, and cart-horses, without taking the least notice of them.

The departure was not unduly prolonged.[…]Within the door Mrs. Spoker hastily imparted to Mrs. Love a few final sentiments on the subject of Divine Intention in the disposition of buckets; farewells and last commiserations; a deep, guttural instigation to the horse; and the wheels of the waggonette crunched heavily away into obscurity.

She said: "I'm starved. I could eat a horse." I told her she was lying, because I had once eaten horse.

This "horse" (a slang term for prison officers who smuggle contraband into the institution) was probably able "to stay in business" for such a long time because he only "packed" for powerful, trustworthy prisoners […]

"Stop horsing, and guess how many kids!"

Synonyms for horse

Antonyms for horse

Related Words

Word Forms

• horses
• harse
• hawss
• hoss
• horsing
• horsed

Usage Notes

Choose a synonym only when it preserves the intended meaning, tone, and grammar of the full sentence.

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