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

The parking area also includes a dedicated bike corral with bike racks and lockers. — Christa Swanson, CBS News, 22 June 2026

The only bummer is that, unlike a massive iOS update for iPhone wielders, users outside of the enthusiast corral may miss some of the under-the-hood enhancements brought on by Android 17. — Florence Ion, PC Magazine, 16 June 2026

Verb

Sweden had a legitimate threat in stoppage time on goal, but Suzuki was able to corral it and avoid the late winner for the Swedes. — Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 26 June 2026

Yet, Simpson couldn’t corral the baseball as two runs scored. — Kansas City Star, 25 June 2026

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
• locale
• morale
• royale
• artisanal
• 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