gallop

1 of 2

verb

gal·lop ˈga-ləp

galloped; galloping; gallops

Synonyms of gallop next

intransitive verb

: to progress or ride at a gallop

: to run fast

transitive verb

: to cause to gallop

: to transport at a gallop

galloper noun

gallop

2 of 2

noun

: a bounding gait of a quadruped

specifically : a fast natural usually 4-beat gait of the horse compare canter entry 3, run

: a ride or run at a gallop

: a stretch of land suitable for galloping horses

: a rapid or hasty progression or pace

Example Sentences

Verb The horse galloped toward us. He mounted his horse and galloped off to sound the alarm. She galloped her horse toward us. I grabbed my books and galloped out the door. The program gallops through early American history. Noun The horse was at full gallop. He mounted his horse and took off at a gallop. We went for a gallop through the countryside. See More

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

For Argentina, Álvarez has grown into a marauding match-winner in his own right, while the team’s wingbacks, Marcos Acuña and Nahuel Molina, gallop up and down the flanks, causing havoc. —

Sam Knight, The New Yorker, 17 Dec. 2022 For their study, lead author Pieter Fiers of the University of Antwerp and his colleagues had a dozen volunteers run and gallop down a hallway, then dissected their motion in great detail. —

Elizabeth Preston, Discover Magazine, 7 Jan. 2013 The synths gallop like excitable ponies while his warm-wash vocals swoop and dip, a sweet little slice of life-support disco for the lonely. —

Jason Lamphier, EW.com, 9 Dec. 2022 The poor beleaguered horse would gallop and kick; the monkey would scream; the audience would roar. —

Stephen Greenblatt, The New York Review of Books, 1 Dec. 2022 With a ban on motor vehicles and a plethora of hiking and biking trails, jump on horseback to trot or gallop around the island while admiring the changing leaves. —

Roger Sands, Forbes, 11 Oct. 2022 The invasion of Ukraine by Russia, the largest exporter of oil and gas to global markets, and the retaliatory sanctions that followed have caused gas and oil prices to gallop with an astounding ferocity. —

New York Times, 2 July 2022 Unfortunate possibilities could gallop wildly through your imagination, dragging you down into the shadows. —

Chicago Tribune, 14 July 2022 Maine’s the Ghosts of Paul Revere gallop forth, virtually, at 10 p.m. Tickets via mandolin.com. —

Gary Graff, cleveland, 11 May 2022

Noun

Archbishop Williams 28, Cardinal Spellman 21 — Marcus Thurston rushed for 302 yards and four touchdowns — capped by a go-ahead 57-yard gallop in the fourth quarter — to lead the Bishops (5-6) to a Catholic Central win. —

Brad Joyal, BostonGlobe.com, 24 Nov. 2022 Instead, Stanford was singularly fixated on how horses ran, believing that when the animal reached a full gallop, all of its hooves were off the ground, making it, essentially, an airborne creature. —

Jason Bailey, Vulture, 22 July 2022 The 6-5 Johnson, viewed as a drop-back passer, was credited with 62 yards rushing on six carries, including a 48-yard gallop. —

Chuck Carlton, Dallas News, 9 Apr. 2022 Hämäläinen is fond of the long-distance scholarly raid, and the book often proceeds at a gallop. —

David Treuer, The New Yorker, 7 Nov. 2022 Jonathan Edwards in full gallop, reading the chiliastic signs. —

Michael Robbins, Harper’s Magazine , 9 Nov. 2022 Harassment will flourish, and misinformation will force any rational discussion to fight a Gish gallop of lies and conspiracy theories. —

Brynn Tannehill, The New Republic, 26 Oct. 2022 Derick Coulanges added the next two scores, headlined by a 30-yard gallop. —

Nate Weitzer, BostonGlobe.com, 10 Sep. 2022 His 80 yard scoring gallop on the game’s first play from scrimmage set an early tone, and Casteel never had an answer. —

Ben Stapley, The Arizona Republic, 10 Oct. 2022 See More

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'gallop.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English galopen, walopen, borrowed from Anglo-French galoper, gualoper (Picard dialect waloper), perhaps going back to Old Low Franconian *wala hlaupan, literally "to run well," from *wala "well, with good appearance or effect" (going back to Germanic *welō) + *hlaupan "to run," going back to Germanic *hlaup-a- — more at well entry 3, leap entry 1

Note: An alternative explanation sees the Old French noun as primary, and derived from Old Low Franconian *walhlaup-, from *wal- "battlefield" and *hlaup-, a nominal derivative of *hlaupan (hence alluding to a warriorʼs manner of riding on the battlefield). Though the meaning of the first noun is reflected in Old High German wal "battlefield," the general meaning of the Germanic etymon is "the slain, the dead in battle" (see valhalla).

Noun

borrowed from Middle French & Anglo-French galop, noun derivative of galoper "to gallop entry 1"; replacing Middle English walop, borrowed from Anglo-French walop, galop

Note: Alternatively, the noun could be original, and the verb a derivative of the noun. See note at gallop entry 1.

First Known Use

Verb

15th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Noun

1523, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler

The first known use of gallop was in the 15th century

See more words from the same century