hoss

noun

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\ ˈhȯs

, ˈhäs \

plural hosses

Definition of hoss

1 informal : horse entry 1 sense 1a(1) —used especially in representations of southern and southwestern U.S. speech "I went straight to the camp of the cavalrymen, an' found them just coolin' off an' dressin' down their hosses after what looked to me like a big ride."— Zane Grey

2 informal : horse entry 1 sense 7 He [J. J. Watt] is still a hoss. Watt played 91.5 percent of the Texans' defensive snaps last season, the highest of any free agent defensive lineman.— Gregg Rosenthal

History and Etymology for hoss

regional variant of horse entry 1 in England and North America

Note: Assimilative loss of /r/ before /s/ is attested in a number of words in early Modern English (compare ass entry 2, bust entry 2, cuss entry 1, and the standard pronunciation of Worcester). R. Jordan finds evidence of the change from ca. 1300 (Handbuch der mittelenglischen Grammatik: Lautlehre, 3. Auflage [Heidelberg, 1968], pp. 150-51).