stalking horse

noun

stalk·​ing horse ˈstȯ-kiŋ- 

1

: a horse or a figure like a horse behind which a hunter stalks game

2

: something used to mask a purpose

3

: a candidate put forward to divide the opposition or to conceal someone's real candidacy

Examples of stalking horse in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Per the agreement, Applebee's will act as the stalking horse bidder, a term for an entity that sets the minimum sale price for assets during bankruptcy sales, per Washington, D.C. law firm Jones Day. —Saleen Martin, USA Today, 4 Apr. 2026

After the buildings were put into bankruptcy last year, Summit offered to buy dozens of buildings in Brooklyn, Manhattan, Bronx and Queens in the form of a stalking horse bid, meaning the transaction is subject to potentially better offers at auction. —Jonathan Randles, Bloomberg, 6 Jan. 2026

The stalking horse bid is subject to better offers should any materialize in the coming weeks. —Bloomberg, Mercury News, 31 Dec. 2025

Now Lugano is going through Chapter 11 proceedings with jewelry specialist Enhanced Retail Funding standing as the stalking horse bidder to own the business afterward. —Evan Clark, Footwear News, 17 Nov. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1519, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for stalking horse

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