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1a large animal with four legs, a mane (= long thick hair on its neck), and a tail. Horses are used for riding on, pulling carriages, etc. He mounted his horse and rode off. a horse and cart see colt, filly, foal, gelding, mare, stallion
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- 2the horses [plural] (informal) horse racing He lost a lot of money on the horses (= by gambling on races).
- 3= vaulting horse see clothes horse, hobbyhorse, Quarter Horse, rocking horse, sea horse, stalking horse, Trojan horse Idioms
to waste your effort by trying to do something that is no longer possible
to behave in a way that shows you think you are better than other people
to change to a different or new activity while you are in the middle of something else; to change from supporting one person or thing to another
to try to prevent or avoid loss or damage when it is already too late to do so
to try to prevent or avoid loss or damage when it is already too late to do so
a person taking part in a race, etc. who surprises everyone by winning
to eat a lot She may be thin, but she eats like a horse.
(of information) given by someone who is directly involved and therefore likely to be accurate
to stop behaving in a way that shows you think you are better than other people
used to tell someone that they should wait a moment and not be so excited that they take action without thinking about it first
a completely different situation or person from the one previously mentioned
wishing for something does not make it happen
(usually with negatives) (informal) to refuse or criticize something that is given to you for nothing I'm never one to look a gift horse in the mouth.
a competition or an election in which there are only one, two, etc. teams or candidates with a chance of winning The women's tennis championship was a two horse race between last year's winners New Rochelle and the previous champions Hyde Park.
to put or do things in the wrong order
used to say that nothing would prevent someone from doing something or make them do something they do not want to do
you can give someone the opportunity to do something, but you cannot force them to do it if they do not want to
Check pronunciation: horse