Illustration of saddle
- 1 western
- 2 English
often attributive
1
a(1)
: a girthed usually padded and leather-covered seat for the rider of an animal (such as a horse)
(2)
: a part of a driving harness comparable to a saddle that is used to keep the breeching in place
b
: a seat to be straddled by the rider of a vehicle (such as a bicycle)
2
: a device mounted as a support and often shaped to fit the object held
3
a
: a ridge connecting two higher elevations
b
: a pass in a mountain range
4
a
: both sides of the unsplit back of a carcass including both loins
b
: a colored marking on the back of an animal
c
: the rear part of a male fowl's back extending to the tail see duck illustration
5
: the central part of the spine of the binding of a book
6
: a piece of leather across the instep of a shoe
saddled; saddling
ˈsad-liŋ 
ˈsa-dᵊl-iŋ
1
: to put a saddle on
2
a
: to place under a burden or encumbrance
b
: to place (an onerous responsibility) on a person or group
: to mount a saddled horse
Synonyms
Examples of saddle in a Sentence
Noun
the next day's hike was a stiff climb out of the saddle where they had camped for the night
Verb
He saddled his horse and mounted it.
to the social worker it seemed as though her supervisor had once again saddled her with a truly hopeless case
Recent Examples on the Web
USA TODAY, 10 Apr. 2024
Vermont is known for its trail rides, and seeing the mountain peaks and rolling farmland from the saddle is a must-try.
—Kira Turnbull, Travel + Leisure, 2 Apr. 2024
On Friday, Princess Anne’s daughter was spotted in the saddle on the grounds of the Thoresby Park International Eventing Spring Carnival in Newark, Nottinghamshire.
—Janine Henni, Peoplemag, 29 Mar. 2024
The spacious bag has several compartments to keep items organized, is made from strong double-face leather, and comes in four colors (gold/chalk light saddle, gold/black true red, black antique nickel/flax 2, or gold/taupe oxblood).
—Rachel Simon, Southern Living, 21 Mar. 2024
In a negatively curved universe, space is bent in a saddle shape.
—Kat Friedrich, Ars Technica, 1 Dec. 2023
Cross the Masai Mara on horseback Photo: Courtesy of Black Saddle
An African wildlife safari is a stirring adventure in itself, but doing it from a saddle adds a whole new layer to the thrill.
—Chris Schalkx, Vogue, 15 Mar. 2024
His voice is as deep as a canyon, tough as tree bark and weathered like a hand-me-down saddle.
—Ed Masley, The Arizona Republic, 27 Jan. 2024
The mink eel distressed saddle bag by John Galliano matched perfectly with the white fur look of her coat, tying the whole look together.
—Julia Moore, Peoplemag, 22 Feb. 2024
Ryan Fonseca, Los Angeles Times, 11 Apr. 2024
As mentioned above, Steward is in rough financial shape, in large part because its previous private equity owner saddled the company with hundreds of millions in debt.
—Tara Bannow, STAT, 1 Apr. 2024
Toward the end of the year, Pima County began the transition to the new federal Shelter and Services Program funding model, which saddles nonprofits and local agencies with tighter restrictions on what the money can be used for.
—The Arizona Republic, 26 Mar. 2024
Pletcher will also be saddling Bail Us Out (15-1) in the Florida Derby’s field of 11 3-year-olds.
—Clark Spencer, Miami Herald, 28 Mar. 2024
For no state should saddle companies with onerous, unneeded regulations that have clearly reached the end of their lifespan.
—Mercury News & East Bay Times Editorial Boards, The Mercury News, 9 Mar. 2024
The best evidence of that is the fact that the private owners of the track are willing to give it away as part of this boondoggle, saddling local government with another money pit — worse than its catastrophic investment in the downtown Hilton Hotel.
—Reader Commentary, Baltimore Sun, 25 Jan. 2024
Wilson saddled us with J. Edgar Hoover (first hired and promoted under Wilson), the Palmer raids, and the imprisonment of Eugene V. Debs, one of Wilson’s 1912 opponents.
—Dan McLaughlin, National Review, 6 Feb. 2024
Though that may sound like a lot to saddle on a single generation, these spritely young people will likely turn out to be even more extraordinary than anyone could have guessed.
—Sarah Cottrell, Parents, 30 Jan. 2024
Noun
Aerosmith will be back in the saddle again this fall.
—USA TODAY, 10 Apr. 2024
Vermont is known for its trail rides, and seeing the mountain peaks and rolling farmland from the saddle is a must-try.
—Kira Turnbull, Travel + Leisure, 2 Apr. 2024
On Friday, Princess Anne’s daughter was spotted in the saddle on the grounds of the Thoresby Park International Eventing Spring Carnival in Newark, Nottinghamshire.
—Janine Henni, Peoplemag, 29 Mar. 2024
The spacious bag has several compartments to keep items organized, is made from strong double-face leather, and comes in four colors (gold/chalk light saddle, gold/black true red, black antique nickel/flax 2, or gold/taupe oxblood).
—Rachel Simon, Southern Living, 21 Mar. 2024
In a negatively curved universe, space is bent in a saddle shape.
—Kat Friedrich, Ars Technica, 1 Dec. 2023
Cross the Masai Mara on horseback Photo: Courtesy of Black Saddle
An African wildlife safari is a stirring adventure in itself, but doing it from a saddle adds a whole new layer to the thrill.
—Chris Schalkx, Vogue, 15 Mar. 2024
His voice is as deep as a canyon, tough as tree bark and weathered like a hand-me-down saddle.
—Ed Masley, The Arizona Republic, 27 Jan. 2024
The mink eel distressed saddle bag by John Galliano matched perfectly with the white fur look of her coat, tying the whole look together.
—Julia Moore, Peoplemag, 22 Feb. 2024
Verb
The sale saddled the company with a huge debt load.
—Ryan Fonseca, Los Angeles Times, 11 Apr. 2024
As mentioned above, Steward is in rough financial shape, in large part because its previous private equity owner saddled the company with hundreds of millions in debt.
—Tara Bannow, STAT, 1 Apr. 2024
Toward the end of the year, Pima County began the transition to the new federal Shelter and Services Program funding model, which saddles nonprofits and local agencies with tighter restrictions on what the money can be used for.
—The Arizona Republic, 26 Mar. 2024
Pletcher will also be saddling Bail Us Out (15-1) in the Florida Derby’s field of 11 3-year-olds.
—Clark Spencer, Miami Herald, 28 Mar. 2024
For no state should saddle companies with onerous, unneeded regulations that have clearly reached the end of their lifespan.
—Mercury News & East Bay Times Editorial Boards, The Mercury News, 9 Mar. 2024
The best evidence of that is the fact that the private owners of the track are willing to give it away as part of this boondoggle, saddling local government with another money pit — worse than its catastrophic investment in the downtown Hilton Hotel.
—Reader Commentary, Baltimore Sun, 25 Jan. 2024
Wilson saddled us with J. Edgar Hoover (first hired and promoted under Wilson), the Palmer raids, and the imprisonment of Eugene V. Debs, one of Wilson’s 1912 opponents.
—Dan McLaughlin, National Review, 6 Feb. 2024
Though that may sound like a lot to saddle on a single generation, these spritely young people will likely turn out to be even more extraordinary than anyone could have guessed.
—Sarah Cottrell, Parents, 30 Jan. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'saddle.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
Noun
Middle English sadel, from Old English sadol; akin to Old High German satul saddle
First Known Use
Noun
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a(1)
Verb
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1
Time Traveler
The first known use of saddle was
before the 12th century
Phrases Containing saddle
Dictionary Entries Near saddle
Cite this Entry
“Saddle.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/saddle. Accessed 18 Apr. 2024.
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Kids Definition
saddle
1 of 2 noun
sad·dle
ˈsad-ᵊl
1
a
: a padded and leather-covered seat for a horseback rider
b
: a padded part of a harness
c
: a bicycle or motorcycle seat
2
: something like a saddle in shape, position, or use
especially
: a support for an object
Medical Definition
saddle
noun
sad·dle
ˈsad-ᵊl
: the part of a partial denture that carries an artificial tooth and has connectors for adjacent teeth attached to its ends
More from Merriam-Webster on saddle
Nglish: Translation of saddle for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of saddle for Arabic Speakers
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about saddle
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