quarter horse

noun

: any of a breed of compact muscular saddle horses developed in the U.S. and characterized by great endurance and by high speed for short distances

Illustration of quarter horse

Examples of quarter horse in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The death toll over a serious equine virus at Los Alamitos grew to 12, with five more horses euthanized after an outbreak of equine infectious anemia (EIA) in the barn of quarter horse hall of fame trainer Heath Taylor. —John Cherwa, Los Angeles Times, 17 Oct. 2024

Los Alamitos runs a year-round quarter horse and thoroughbred meeting that is partly made up of lower level thoroughbred horses. —John Cherwa, Los Angeles Times, 4 Oct. 2024

Next October his first set of quarter horses are set to go into futurity, a competition which offers staggering prize money to winners. —Eric Jackson, Sportico.com, 19 July 2024

Riding through the festival crowd on horseback to her Saturday evening set on the Great Northern Stage, Ferrell hopped off the quarter horse, immediately strapped on an acoustic guitar and went right into a jam with her band. —Garret K. Woodward, Rolling Stone, 15 July 2024

Word History

Etymology

from its high speed for distances up to a quarter of a mile

First Known Use

1822, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

quarter horse

noun

: any of a breed of stocky muscular horses capable of high speed for short distances

Word Origin

Quarter horse might seem like a strange name for an animal that is not only full-sized but quite sturdy and muscular. However, the breed gets its name not because it is a fraction of a horse but because it can run very fast for short distances. Unlike the slender, long-legged Thoroughbred horse, the compact quarter horse is built for quick bursts of speed. For about a quarter-mile the quarter horse probably can run faster than any other breed of horse. After that distance the quarter horse begins to slow down and can be beaten in a race with other horses.