Horseback

//ˈhɔɹsˌbæk// adv, noun

adv, noun ·Moderate ·College level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    The back of a horse. countable, uncountable, usually, with-on

    "They came on horseback across the plains."

  2. 2
    the back of a horse wordnet
  3. 3
    A ridge of sand, gravel, and boulders. countable
  4. 4
    a narrow ridge of hills wordnet
Adverb
  1. 1
    On the back of a horse. not-comparable
Adverb
  1. 1
    on the back of a horse wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms
eskerhogbackahorseacrossahorseahorse

Example

More examples

"Football originally meant "a game played with a ball on foot" - unlike a game played on horseback, such as polo."

Etymology

From Middle English horsebacke, horsebak, horsbak, equivalent to horse + back.

Related phrases

angels on horsebackballet on horsebackdevils on horsebackegg on horsebackeggs on horsebackhorseback opinionman on horsebackset a beggar on horseback and he'll ride to the Devil

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.