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 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

Standard practices with cattle can break the skin, including shearing and dehorning, or even moving them in and out of corrals can cause scrapes and cuts. —CBS News, 8 June 2026

Verb

Goodman’s prose is clear rather than complex, and carefully calibrated to each of her characters; the book’s form corrals the natural speed of her sentences into act-length shapes that one moves around in one’s head like puzzle pieces. —Literary Hub, 18 June 2026

Messi stuck a boot back, corralled the ball, took a half-turn and fired a laser low and into the corner of the net past Zidane. —Kyle Feldscher, CNN Money, 17 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