quarter horse

noun

: any of a breed of compact muscular saddle horses developed in the U.S. and characterized by great endurance and by high speed for short distances

Illustration of quarter horse

Examples of quarter horse in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The organization lacks jurisdiction over quarter horses, such as Js on Fire, or other racing breeds, which are instead regulated by state commissions that operate under reciprocal enforcement agreements but do not uniformly adopt testing thresholds or methods. —Daniel Libit, Sportico.com, 21 Jan. 2026

In mid-December, Jett, an appendix quarter horse, was battling a fever and had been eating and drinking minimally. —Kristi Miller, Twin Cities, 7 Jan. 2026

After Robert Mitchum’s death in July 1997 at age 79, Jim continued to breed racing quarter horses at his ranch in Skull Valley. —Mike Barnes, HollywoodReporter, 3 Oct. 2025

Knowledgeable wranglers lead family pony rides and more advanced trail forays atop American quarter horses across the property’s 1,800 acres. —Nicholas Derenzo, AFAR Media, 16 Sep. 2025

Word History

Etymology

from its high speed for distances up to a quarter of a mile

First Known Use

1822, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for quarter horse

• counterforce
• intercourse
• nonrecourse
• reinforce
• watercourse
• bourse
• coarse
• course
• force
• gorse
• hoarse
• norse

Kids Definition

quarter horse

noun

: any of a breed of stocky muscular horses capable of high speed for short distances

Word Origin

Quarter horse might seem like a strange name for an animal that is not only full-sized but quite sturdy and muscular. However, the breed gets its name not because it is a fraction of a horse but because it can run very fast for short distances. Unlike the slender, long-legged Thoroughbred horse, the compact quarter horse is built for quick bursts of speed. For about a quarter-mile the quarter horse probably can run faster than any other breed of horse. After that distance the quarter horse begins to slow down and can be beaten in a race with other horses.