corral

1 of 2

noun

cor·​ral kə-ˈral 

-ˈrel

1

: a pen or enclosure for confining or capturing livestock

herded the cattle into the corral

2

: an enclosure made with wagons for defense of an encampment

corral

2 of 2

verb

corralled; corralling

transitive verb

1

: to enclose in a corral (see corral entry 1 sense 1)

corralled the horses

2

: to arrange (wagons) so as to form a corral (see corral entry 1 sense 2)

3

: collect, gather

corralling votes for the upcoming election

Synonyms of corral

Noun

• cage
• coop

Verb

• house
• confine
• enclose
• surround
• pen
• cage
• encase

Examples of corral in a Sentence

Noun

the horses live in our corral, along with a cow

Verb

corralled everyone in the conference room for a speech by the CEO

corralled a scattering of stray pens and quickly stuffed them in the drawer to tidy the desk

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

While the actual gunfight took place in a vacant lot behind the corral, the property was expanded and now includes the original site. —Roger Naylor, AZCentral.com, 21 Nov. 2025

At Paulsen’s house, players walk past a minivan in the driveway, ring the doorbell and listen for a moment as Paulsen and Kelly corral the dogs and the kids. —Jourdan Rodrigue, New York Times, 25 Oct. 2025

Verb

Playground Productions began making the classic games available on modern devices after corralling the necessary IP rights in 2024. —Jacob Feldman, Sportico.com, 13 Nov. 2025

Here was a chance to get another possession, down by only two, if the 49ers could just corral the rebound. —Scott Fowler, Charlotte Observer, 12 Nov. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun and Verb

Spanish, from Vulgar Latin *currale enclosure for vehicles, from Latin currus cart, from currere to run — more at car

First Known Use

Noun

1582, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1847, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for corral

• canal
• chorale
• ghazal
• locale
• morale
• royale
• bal
• dal
• gal
• mal
• pal
• sal

Kids Definition

corral

1 of 2 noun

cor·​ral kə-ˈral 

1

: a pen for keeping or capturing livestock

2

: an enclosure made with wagons for defense of a camp

corral

2 of 2 verb

corralled; corralling

1

: to keep in or as if in a corral

2

: surround entry 1, capture

3

: to arrange wagons so as to form a corral