horse around

horse  (hôrs)

n.

1.

a. A large hoofed mammal (Equus caballus) having a short-haired coat, a long mane, and a long tail, domesticated since ancient times and used for riding and for drawing or carrying loads.

b. An adult male horse; a stallion.

c. Any of various equine mammals, such as the wild Asian species E. przewalskii or certain extinct forms related ancestrally to the modern horse.

2. A frame or device, usually with four legs, used for supporting or holding.

3. Sports A vaulting horse.

4. Slang Heroin.

5. Horsepower. Often used in the plural.

6. Mounted soldiers; cavalry: a squadron of horse.

7. Geology

a. A block of rock interrupting a vein and containing no minerals.

b. A large block of displaced rock that is caught along a fault.

v. horsed, hors·ing, hors·es

v.tr.

1. To provide with a horse.

2. To haul or hoist energetically: "Things had changed little since the days of the pyramids, with building materials being horsed into place by muscle power" (Henry Allen).

v.intr.

To be in heat. Used of a mare.

adj.

1. Of or relating to a horse: a horse blanket.

2. Mounted on horses: horse guards.

3. Drawn or operated by a horse.

4. Larger or cruder than others that are similar: horse pills.

Phrasal Verb:

horse around Informal

To indulge in horseplay or frivolous activity: Stop horsing around and get to work.

Idioms:

a horse of another/a different color

Another matter entirely; something else.

beat/flog a dead horse

1. To continue to pursue a cause that has no hope of success.

2. To dwell tiresomely on a matter that has already been decided.

be/get on (one's) high horse

To be or become disdainful, superior, or conceited.

hold (one's) horses

To restrain oneself.

the horse's mouth

A source of information regarded as original or unimpeachable.

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[Middle English, from Old English hors.]

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horse around or about

Verb

Informal to play roughly or boisterously

Thesaurus

Verb

1.

horse around - indulge in horseplay; "Enough horsing around--let's get back to work!"; "The bored children were fooling about" fool around, arse around, fool jest, joke - tell a joke; speak humorously; "He often jokes even when he appears serious" play - be at play; be engaged in playful activity; amuse oneself in a way characteristic of children; "The kids were playing outside all day"; "I used to play with trucks as a little girl"