horse

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   troops trained to fight on horseback

   500 horse led the attack

2. 2
   noun

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

   A cowboy's greatest friend is his horse.

3. 3
   noun

   Equipment with legs.

   She's scored very highly with the parallel bars; let's see how she does with the horse.

4. 4
   noun

   A type of equipment.

   The old “horse” has made way for the “foot-rope", though we still retain the term “Flemish horse" for the short foot-rope at the top-sail yard-arms

5. 5
   noun

   The flesh of a horse as an item of cuisine.

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

6. 6
   noun

   A prison guard who smuggles contraband in or out for prisoners.

   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 […]

7. 7
   verb

   Synonym of horse around.

   "Stop horsing, and guess how many kids!"

8. 8
   verb

   To play mischievous pranks on.

   Was someone horsing her? Was it Josh's idea of a joke? For some moments she sat, plump hands with long pointed pink nails, toying with the envelope. Then she went to the telephone and called[…]

Etymology

From Middle English hors, horse, ors, from Old English hors (“horse”), from Proto-West Germanic *hors, *hross, from Proto-Germanic *hrussą (“horse”), from Proto-Indo-European *ḱr̥sós (“vehicle”), from Proto-Indo-European *ḱers- (“to run”). Doublet of car and carrus. Cognates Cognate with Scots horse (“horse”), West Frisian hoars (“horse”), Cimbrian ross (“horse”), Dutch hors, ros (“horse”), German Ross, Roß (“horse”), Danish and Norwegian Nynorsk hors (“horse, mare”), Faroese hors, ross (“horse”), Icelandic hross (“horse”), Swedish russ (“horse”); also Cornish karr (“car”), Welsh car (“car; ca…