starting gate

noun

Updated on: 29 Mar 2018

Definition of starting gate

1 : a mechanically operated barrier used as a starting device for a race

2 : a barrier that when knocked aside by a competitor (such as a skier) starts an electronic timing device

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Recent Examples of starting gate from the Web

With the Derby only seven weeks away, chances for horses to earn points in major preps – and a place in the Churchill Downs starting gate – are quickly dwindling.

— debbie arrington, sacbee, "These horses emerged as Kentucky Derby favorites after an epic duel in California | The Sacramento Bee," 16 Mar. 2018
Then Ester Ledecka of the Czech Republic, the 26th racer to leave the start gate, dashed down the hill.

— New York Times, "Moments Large and Small in a Memorable Olympics," 25 Feb. 2018
The four racers who made the team trained together, meeting up for a week at time in Park City or Argentina, building start gates and maintaining the courses themselves.

— adam kilgore, Anchorage Daily News, "‘A bunch of idiots having fun’: U.S. snowboard cross team nearly grabs Olympic medal," 16 Feb. 2018
Getting closer and closer to getting in the start gate!

— jason duaine hahn, PEOPLE.com, "Mikaela Shiffrin Wins Gold in the Giant Slalom After Finally Making Her 2018 Olympic Debut," 15 Feb. 2018
Points are reduced for a higher starting gate, while points are added for a lower one.

— charlotte carroll, SI.com, "A Rookie's Guide to Ski Jumping at the 2018 Winter Olympics," 6 Dec. 2017
Both the Santa Anita Derby and the Wood are even more central this year to who makes it to the Louisville starting gate in May for a second reason.

— eric banks, Town & Country, "The Railbird," 3 Apr. 2013
Then wave after wave of no more than eight riders at a time flew off the retractable starting gate.

— david allan, CNN, "BMX racing is rad and totally back from the '80s," 20 Oct. 2017
The 40th-annual running of the Detroit marathon began as scheduled at 7 a.m. as the first wave of thousands of marathoners and half marathoners left the starting gate on West Fort Street just west of Cass.

— bill laitner, Detroit Free Press, "2017 Detroit marathon has begun!," 15 Oct. 2017

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

First Known Use of starting gate

1893

in the meaning defined at sense 1

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STARTING GATE Defined for English Language Learners

starting gate

noun

Definition of starting gate for English Language Learners

: a gate or set of gates that opens at the start of a horse or dog race to let the animals begin racing

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