Adjacent Words

Horse definitions

	Tweet

Webster's 1828 Dictionary

HORSE, n. hors.
1. A species of quadrupeds of the genus Equus, having six erect and parallel fore-teeth in the upper jaw, and six somewhat prominent in the under jaw; the dog teeth are solitary, and the feet consist of an undivided hoof. The horse is a beautiful animal, and of great use for draught or conveyance on his back. Horse, in English, is of common gender, and may comprehend the male and female.
2. A constellation.
3. Cavalry; a body of troops serving on horseback. In this sense, it has no plural termination. We say, a thousand horse, a regiment of horse.
4. A machine by which something is supported; usually a wooden frame with legs. Various machines used in the arts are thus called.
5. A wooden machine on which soldiers ride by way of punishment; sometimes called a timber-mare.
6. In seamen's language, a rope extending from the middle of a yard to its extremity, to support the sailors while they loose, reef or furl the sails, also, a thick rope extended near the mast for hoisting a yard or extending a sail on it.
To take horse to set out to ride on horseback.
1. To be covered, as a mare.
HORSE, v.t. To mount on a horse.
1. To carry on the back.
The keeper, horsing a deer.
2. To ride astride; as ridges horsed.
3. To cover a mare, as the male.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: solid-hoofed herbivorous quadruped domesticated since prehistoric times [syn: horse, Equus caballus]
2: a padded gymnastic apparatus on legs [syn: horse, gymnastic horse]
3: troops trained to fight on horseback; "500 horse led the attack" [syn: cavalry, horse cavalry, horse]
4: a framework for holding wood that is being sawed [syn: sawhorse, horse, sawbuck, buck]
5: a chessman shaped to resemble the head of a horse; can move two squares horizontally and one vertically (or vice versa) [syn: knight, horse] v
1: provide with a horse or horses

Merriam Webster's

I. noun (plural horses; also horse) Etymology: Middle English hors, from Old English; akin to Old High German hros horse Date: before 12th century 1. a. (1) a large solid-hoofed herbivorous ungulate mammal (Equus caballus, family Equidae, the horse family) domesticated since prehistoric times and used as a beast of burden, a draft animal, or for riding (2) racehorse <play the horses> b. a male horse; especially stallion c. a recent or extinct animal (as a zebra, ass, or onager) of the horse family 2. a. jackstay b. a frame usually with legs used for supporting something (as planks or staging) c. (1) pommel horse (2) vaulting horse 3. horse plural cavalry 4. a mass of the same geological character as the wall rock occurring within a vein 5. horsepower 6. slang heroin 7. an athlete whose performance is consistently strong and reliable <a team with the horses to win the pennant> 8. or H-O-R-S-E a game in which players take turns attempting to duplicate successful basketball shots, a letter of the word "horse" is awarded for each missed attempt, and the first player to receive all five letters loses • horseless adjective • horselike adjective II. verb (horsed; horsing) Date: before 12th century transitive verb 1. to provide with a horse 2. to move by brute force intransitive verb of a mare to be in heat III. adjective Date: 15th century 1. a. of or relating to a horse b. hauled or powered by a horse <a horse barge> 2. large or coarse of its kind 3. mounted on horses <horse guards>

Britannica Concise

Equine species (Equus caballus) long used by humans as a means of transport and as a draft animal. Its earliest ancestor was the dawn horse (see eohippus). The only living horse not descended from the domestic horse is Przewalski's horse. The horse was apparently first domesticated by nomadic peoples of central Asia in the 3rd millennium BC. Horses were primarily used in warfare for many centuries. The saddle was introduced in China in the first centuries AD. Horses were reintroduced to the New World, after wild horses had become extinct there some 10,000 years earlier, by the Spanish in the 16th cent. A mature male is called a stallion or, if used for breeding, a stud; mature females are called mares. A castrated stallion is called a gelding. Young horses (foals) are also known as colts (males) and fillies (females). A horse's height is measured in 4-in. (10.2-cm) units, or hands, from the highest point of the back (withers) to the ground. Breeds are classified by size and build: draft (heavy) horses (e.g., Belgian, Percheron) are heavy-limbed and up to 20 hands high; ponies (e.g.,Shetland, Iceland) are less than 14.2 hands high; and light horses (e.g., Arabian, Thoroughbred) are intermediate, rarely taller than 17 hands.

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. & v. --n. 1 a a solid-hoofed plant-eating quadruped, Equus caballus, with flowing mane and tail, used for riding and to carry and pull loads. b an adult male horse; a stallion or gelding. c any other four-legged mammal of the genus Equus, including asses and zebras. d (collect.; as sing.) cavalry. e a representation of a horse. 2 a vaulting-block. 3 a supporting frame esp. with legs (clothes-horse). 4 sl. heroin. 5 colloq. a unit of horsepower. 6 Naut. any of various ropes and bars. 7 Mining an obstruction in a vein. --v. 1 intr. (foll. by around) fool about. 2 tr. provide (a person or vehicle) with a horse or horses. 3 intr. mount or go on horseback. Phrases and idioms: from the horse's mouth (of information etc.) from the person directly concerned or another authoritative source. horse-and-buggy US old-fashioned, bygone. horse-block a small platform of stone or wood for mounting a horse. horse-brass see BRASS. horse-breaker one who breaks in horses. horse chestnut 1 any large ornamental tree of the genus Aesculus, with upright conical clusters of white or pink or red flowers. 2 the dark brown fruit of this (like an edible chestnut, but with a coarse bitter taste). horse-cloth a cloth used to cover a horse, or as part of its trappings. horse-coper a horse-dealer. horse-doctor a veterinary surgeon attending horses. horse-drawn (of a vehicle) pulled by a horse or horses. Horse Guards 1 (in the UK) the cavalry brigade of the household troops. 2 the headquarters of such cavalry, esp. a building in Whitehall. horse latitudes a belt of calms in each hemisphere between the trade winds and the westerlies. horse-mackerel any large fish of the mackerel type, e.g. the scad or the tunny. horse-mushroom a large edible mushroom, Agaricus arvensis. horse opera US sl. a western film. horse-pistol a pistol for use by a horseman. horse-pond a pond for watering and washing horses, proverbial as a place for ducking obnoxious persons. horse-race a race between horses with riders. horse-racing the sport of conducting horse-races. horse sense colloq. plain common sense. horses for courses the matching of tasks and talents. horse's neck sl. a drink of flavoured ginger ale usu. with spirits. horse-soldier a soldier mounted on a horse. horse-trading 1 US dealing in horses. 2 shrewd bargaining. to horse! (as a command) mount your horses. Derivatives: horseless adj. horselike adj. Etymology: OE hors f. Gmc

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Horse Horse, n. (Student Slang) (a) A translation or other illegitimate aid in study or examination; -- called also trot, pony, Dobbin. (b) Horseplay; tomfoolery.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Footrope Foot"rope`, n. (Aut.) (a) The rope rigged below a yard, upon which men stand when reefing or furling; -- formerly called a horse. (b) That part of the boltrope to which the lower edge of a sail is sewed.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Horse Horse (h[^o]rs), n. [AS. hors; akin to OS. hros, D. & OHG. ros, G. ross, Icel. hross; and perh. to L. currere to run, E. course, current Cf. Walrus.] 1. (Zo["o]l.) A hoofed quadruped of the genus Equus; especially, the domestic horse (E. caballus), which was domesticated in Egypt and Asia at a very early period. It has six broad molars, on each side of each jaw, with six incisors, and two canine teeth, both above and below. The mares usually have the canine teeth rudimentary or wanting. The horse differs from the true asses, in having a long, flowing mane, and the tail bushy to the base. Unlike the asses it has callosities, or chestnuts, on all its legs. The horse excels in strength, speed, docility, courage, and nobleness of character, and is used for drawing, carrying, bearing a rider, and like purposes. Note: Many varieties, differing in form, size, color, gait, speed, etc., are known, but all are believed to have been derived from the same original species. It is supposed to have been a native of the plains of Central Asia, but the wild species from which it was derived is not certainly known. The feral horses of America are domestic horses that have run wild; and it is probably true that most of those of Asia have a similar origin. Some of the true wild Asiatic horses do, however, approach the domestic horse in several characteristics. Several species of fossil (Equus) are known from the later Tertiary formations of Europe and America. The fossil species of other genera of the family Equid[ae] are also often called horses, in general sense. 2. The male of the genus horse, in distinction from the female or male; usually, a castrated male.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

3. Mounted soldiery; cavalry; -- used without the plural termination; as, a regiment of horse; -- distinguished from foot. The armies were appointed, consisting of twenty-five thousand horse and foot. --Bacon. 4. A frame with legs, used to support something; as, a clotheshorse, a sawhorse, etc. 5. A frame of timber, shaped like a horse, on which soldiers were made to ride for punishment. 6. Anything, actual or figurative, on which one rides as on a horse; a hobby. 7. (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. 8. (Naut.) (a) See Footrope, a. (b) A breastband for a leadsman. (c) An iron bar for a sheet traveler to slide upon. (d) A jackstay. --W. C. Russell. --Totten. Note: Horse is much used adjectively and in composition to signify of, or having to do with, a horse or horses, like a horse, etc.; as, horse collar, horse dealer or horse?dealer, horsehoe, horse jockey; and hence, often in the sense of strong, loud, coarse, etc.; as, horselaugh, horse nettle or horse-nettle, horseplay, horse ant, etc. Black horse, Blood horse, etc. See under Black, etc. Horse aloes, caballine aloes. Horse ant (Zo["o]l.), a large ant (Formica rufa); -- called also horse emmet. Horse artillery, that portion of the artillery in which the cannoneers are mounted, and which usually serves with the cavalry; flying artillery. Horse balm (Bot.), a strong-scented labiate plant (Collinsonia Canadensis), having large leaves and yellowish flowers. Horse bean (Bot.), a variety of the English or Windsor bean (Faba vulgaris), grown for feeding horses. Horse boat, a boat for conveying horses and cattle, or a boat propelled by horses. Horse bot. (Zo["o]l.) See Botfly, and Bots. Horse box, a railroad car for transporting valuable horses, as hunters. [Eng.] Horse breaker or trainer, one employed in subduing or training horses for use. Horse car. (a) A railroad car drawn by horses. See under Car. (b) A car fitted for transporting horses. Horse cassia (Bot.), a leguminous plant (Cassia Javanica), bearing long pods, which contain a black, catharic pulp, much used in the East Indies as a horse medicine. Horse cloth, a cloth to cover a horse. Horse conch (Zo["o]l.), a large, spiral, marine shell of the genus Triton. See Triton. Horse courser. (a) One that runs horses, or keeps horses for racing. --Johnson. (b) A dealer in horses. [Obs.] --Wiseman. Horse crab (Zo["o]l.), the Limulus; -- called also horsefoot, horsehoe crab, and king crab. Horse crevall['e] (Zo["o]l.), the cavally.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Horse Horse, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Horsed; p. pr. & vb. n. Horsing.] [AS. horsion.] 1. To provide with a horse, or with horses; to mount on, or as on, a horse. ``Being better horsed, outrode me.'' --Shak. 2. To sit astride of; to bestride. --Shak. 3. To cover, as a mare; -- said of the male. 4. To take or carry on the back; as, the keeper, horsing a deer. --S. Butler. 5. To place on the back of another, or on a wooden horse, etc., to be flogged; to subject to such punishment.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Horse Horse, v. i. To get on horseback. [Obs.] --Shelton.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(horses) Frequency: The word is one of the 1500 most common words in English. 1. A horse is a large animal which people can ride. Some horses are used for pulling ploughs and carts. A small man on a grey horse had appeared. N-COUNT 2. When you talk about the horses, you mean horse races in which people bet money on the horse which they think will win. (INFORMAL) He still likes to bet on the horses. N-PLURAL: the N, usu on the N 3. A vaulting horse is a tall piece of gymnastics equipment for jumping over. N-COUNT 4. If you hear something from the horse's mouth, you hear it from someone who knows that it is definitely true. He has got to hear it from the horse's mouth. Then he can make a judgment as to whether his policy is correct or not. PHRASE: v PHR 5. see also clothes horse, dark horse, rocking horse, seahorse

Easton's Bible Dictionary

always referred to in the Bible in connection with warlike operations, except Isa. 28:28. The war-horse is described Job 39:19-25. For a long period after their settlement in Canaan the Israelites made no use of horses, according to the prohibition, Deut. 17:16. David was the first to form a force of cavalry (2 Sam. 8:4). But Solomon, from his connection with Egypt, greatly multiplied their number (1 Kings 4:26; 10:26, 29). After this, horses were freely used in Israel (1 Kings 22:4; 2 Kings 3:7; 9:21, 33; 11:16). The furniture of the horse consisted simply of a bridle (Isa. 30:28) and a curb (Ps. 32:9).

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

hors:

1. Names:

The common names are (1) cuc, and

(2) hippos.

(3) The word parash, "horseman," occurs often, and in several cases is translated "horse" or "warhorse" (Isa 28:28; Eze 27:14; Joe 2:4 the Revised Version, margin); also in 2Sa 16, where the "horsemen" of English Versions of the Bible is ba`ale ha-parashim, "owners of horses"; compare Arabic faris, "horseman," and faras, "horse".

(4) The feminine form cucah, occurs in So 1:9, and is rendered as follows: Septuagint he hippos; Vulgate (Jerome's Latin Bible, 390-405 A.D.) equitatum; the King James Version "company of horses," the Revised Version (British and American) "steed." It is not clear why English Versions of the Bible does not have "mare."

(5) The word 'abbirim, "strong ones," is used for horses in Jud 5:22; Jer 8:16; 47:3; 50:11 (the King James Version "bulls"). In Ps 22:12 the same word is translated "strong bulls" (of Bashan).

(6) For [~rekhesh (compare Arabic rakad, "to run"), in 1Ki 4:28; Es 8:10,14; Mic 1:13, the Revised Version (British and American) has "swift steeds," while the King James Version gives "dromedaries" in 1Ki and "mules" in Est.

(7) For kirkaroth (Isa 66:20), the King James Version and the English Revised Version have "swift beasts"; the English Revised Version margin and the American Standard Revised Version "dromedaries"; Septuagint skiddia, perhaps "covered carriages." In Es 8:10,14 we find the doubtful words

(8) 'achashteranim, and

(9) bene ha-rammakim, which have been variously translated. the King James Version has respectively "camels" and "young dromedaries," the Revised Version (British and American) "used in the king's service" and "bred of the stud," the Revised Version margin "mules" and "young dromedaries."

See CAMEL.

2. Origin:

The Hebrew and Egyptian names for the horse are alike akin to the Assyrian. The Jews may have obtained horses from Egypt (De 17:16), but the Canaanites before them had horses (Jos 17:16), and in looking toward the Northeast for the origin of the horse, philologists are in agreement with zoologists who consider that the plains of Central Asia, and also of Europe, were the original home of the horse. At least one species of wild horse is still found in Central Asia.

3. Uses:

The horses of the Bible are almost exclusively war-horses, or at least the property of kings and not of the common people. A doubtful reference to the use of horses in threshing grain is found in Isa 28:28. Horses are among the property which the Egyptians gave to Joseph in exchange for grain (Ge 47:17). In De 17:16 it is enjoined that the king "shall not multiply horses to himself, nor cause the people to return to Egypt, to the end that he may multiply horses." This and other injunctions failed to prevent the Jews from borrowing from the neighboring civilizations their customs, idolatries, and vices. Solomon's horses are enumerated in 1Ki 4, and the se`irim and tebhen of 1Ki 4:28 (5:8) are identical with the sha`ir ("barley") and tibn ("straw") with which the arab feeds his horse today. In war, horses were ridden and were driven in chariots (Ex 14:9; Jos 11:4; 2Sa 15:1, etc.).

4. Figurative and Descriptive:

The horse is referred to figuratively chiefly in Zechariah and Revelation. A chariot and horses of fire take Elijah up to heaven (2Ki 2:11 f). In Ps 20:7; 33:17; and 76:6, the great strength of the horse is recalled as a reminder of the greater strength of God. In Jas 3:3, the small bridle by which the horse can be managed is compared to the tongue (compare Ps 32:9). In Job 39:19-25 we have a magnificent description of a spirited war-horse.

Alfred Ely Day

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

n. 1. Steed, charger, stallion, gelding, mare, filly, colt, pony, sheltie or shelty, palfrey, pad, nag, barb, cob, roadster, tit, punch (as the case may be). 2. Cavalry, horsemen. 3. Stand, frame, support, buck.

Moby Thesaurus

Al Borak, American trotter, Amytal, Amytal pill, Angora goat, Appaloosa, Arabian, Arctic fox, Barb, Barbary horse, Belgian, Belgian hare, Black Beauty, Caffre cat, Citation, Cleveland Bay, Demerol, Dolophine, French coach horse, Galloway, Gibraltar, H, Hambletonian, Houyhnhnm, Indian buffalo, Indian club, Kelso, Kodiak bear, Luminal, Luminal pill, M, Mickey Finn, Nashua, Native Dancer, Nembutal, Nembutal pill, Pegasus, Rosinante, Seconal, Seconal pill, Secretariat, Shetland, Shetland pony, Shire, Siberian husky, Silver, Suffolk, Swaps, Topper, Tuinal, Tuinal pill, Turk, Virginia deer, Whirlaway, White Surrey, aardvark, aardwolf, act up, alcohol, alpaca, amobarbital sodium, analgesic, anodyne, anteater, antelope, antelope chipmunk, aoudad, apar, armadillo, ass, aurochs, badger, bandicoot, barb, barbell, barbiturate, barbiturate pill, bassarisk, bat, bear, beast of burden, beaver, bettong, binturong, bison, black bear, black buck, black cat, black fox, black sheep, black stuff, blue, blue angel, blue devil, blue fox, blue heaven, blue velvet, bobcat, brood mare, brown bear, brush deer, brush wolf, buck, buffalo, buffalo wolf, burro, burro deer, cachalot, calmative, camel, camelopard, capybara, carabao, caribou, carpincho, carry on, cat, cat-a-mountain, catamount, cattalo, cavy, chamois, charger, cheetah, chevrotain, chinchilla, chipmunk, chloral hydrate, cinnamon bear, clotheshorse, codeine, codeine cough syrup, colt, coon, coon cat, cotton mouse, cotton rat, cougar, courser, cow, coyote, coypu, critter, cut up, deer, deer tiger, depressant, depressor, dingo, dobbin, dog, dolly, donkey, dormouse, downer, draft animal, dromedary, dumbbell, echidna, eland, elephant, elk, entire, entire horse, equine, ermine, exerciser, eyra, fallow deer, ferret, field mouse, filly, fisher, fitch, flying phalanger, foal, foumart, fox, fox squirrel, gazelle, gelding, gemsbok, genet, giraffe, glutton, gnu, gnu goat, goat, goat antelope, goofball, gopher, grizzly bear, ground squirrel, groundhog, guanaco, guinea pig, hamster, hard stuff, hare, harnessed antelope, hartebeest, heart of oak, hedgehog, heroin, hippopotamus, hog, hop, horse, horseplay, husky, hyena, hypnotic, hyrax, ibex, iron, jackal, jackass, jackrabbit, jaguar, jaguarundi, jennet, jerboa, jerboa kangaroo, junk, kaama, kangaroo, kangaroo mouse, kangaroo rat, karakul, kinkajou, kit fox, knockout drops, koala, lapin, laudanum, lemming, leopard, leopard cat, lion, liquor, llama, long horse, lotus, lynx, malamute, mammoth, mara, mare, marmot, marten, mastodon, meerkat, meperidine, methadone, mink, mole, mongoose, moose, morphia, morphine, mouflon, mount, mountain goat, mountain lion, mountain sheep, mouse, mule, mule deer, muntjac, musk deer, musk hog, musk-ox, muskrat, musquash, nag, nails, narcotic, nilgai, nutria, oak, ocelot, okapi, onager, oont, opiate, opium, opossum, otter, ounce, ox, pacifier, pack horse, pack rat, pain killer, painter, palomino, panda, pangolin, panther, parallel bars, paregoric, peccary, peludo, pen yan, phalanger, phenobarbital, phenobarbital sodium, pig, pine mouse, platypus, pocket gopher, pocket mouse, pocket rat, polar bear, polar fox, polecat, porcupine, possum, pouched rat, poyou, prairie dog, prairie wolf, prancer, pronghorn, puma, punching bag, purple heart, quarter horse, quietener, rabbit, raccoon, rainbow, rat, red, red deer, red squirrel, reindeer, rhinoceros, rings, rock, roe, roe deer, roebuck, rowing machine, sable, saddle horse, sawbuck, sawhorse, scag, secobarbital sodium, sedative, serval, sheep, shit, shrew, shrew mole, side horse, sika, silver fox, skunk, sledge dog, sleep-inducer, sleeper, sleeping draught, sleeping pill, smack, snowshoe rabbit, sodium thiopental, somnifacient, soother, soothing syrup, soporific, springbok, squirrel, stallion, steed, steel, stoat, stud, studhorse, sumpter, sumpter horse, sumpter mule, suslik, swamp rabbit, swine, takin, tamandua, tamarin, tapir, tar, tarpan, tatou, tatou peba, tatouay, thoroughbred, tiger, tiger cat, timber wolf, top horse, trampoline, tranquilizer, trapeze, tree shrew, trestle, trestle and table, trestle board, trestle table, trestlework, trestling, turps, urus, vole, wallaby, war-horse, warthog, water buffalo, waterbuck, weasel, weight, wharf rat, whistler, white fox, white stuff, wild ass, wild boar, wild goat, wild horse, wild ox, wildcat, wildebeest, wolf, wolverine, wombat, wood rat, woodchuck, woolly mammoth, workhorse, yak, yellow, yellow jacket, zebra, zebu, zoril