horse-racing

IPA/ˈhɔːs reɪsɪŋ/
IPA/ˈhɔːrs reɪsɪŋ/

horse-racing — noun

1. a competitive activity in which trained riders guide horses at high speed around

1.nounB1
Definition

a competitive activity in which trained riders guide horses at high speed around a track, commonly organized for prize money and gambling

Example

Naoko's uncle lost a lot of money betting on horse-racing last year.

collocation: bet on horse-racing

Horse-racing has been a popular spectator sport in Britain for hundreds of years.

Common collocations
  • bet on horse-racing
  • go horse-racing
  • horse-racing industry
  • horse-racing business
  • professional horse-racing
Synonyms
  • the turf

    formal or literary term for horse racing as a sport or business, common in British English

  • racing

    shorter, more general term that can also refer to other types of racing; context usually clarifies

Usage Note

Commonly used with 'bet on' or 'go' (e.g., go horse-racing). The industry sense often appears in phrases like 'horse-racing industry' or 'horse-racing business.'

Common Mistakes

I went to the horse-racing' (as a countable event).
I went to the horse race' or 'I went horse-racing.
'Horse-racing' is uncountable when referring to the sport; use 'a horse race' for a single event.

2. a contest in which horses with riders race each other along a set course, watche

2.nounB1
Definition

a contest in which horses with riders race each other along a set course, watched by crowds as a sporting spectacle

Example

The Cheltenham Festival is one of the most famous horse-racing meetings in the world.

collocation: horse-racing meeting / festival

Asher had never been to a horse-racing track and was amazed by the horses' speed.

Common collocations
  • horse-racing event
  • horse-racing track
  • horse-racing fan
  • watch horse-racing
  • horse-racing meeting
Synonyms
  • horse race

    concrete term for one specific race event, where horse-racing is the sport as a whole

  • race meeting

    British term for a series of horse races held at one track over one or more days

Usage Note

This sense focuses on the event or contest itself. Distinguish from sense 1 (COMPETITIVE SPORT), which refers to the broader sport and business. A specific instance is often 'a horse race' or 'a race meeting,' not 'a horse-racing.'

Common Mistakes

We went to a horse-racing yesterday.
We went to a horse race yesterday.
'Horse-racing' is generally uncountable; use 'a horse race' or 'a race meeting' for individual events.

Word family

Common collocations

Nouns

  • horse-racing fan
  • horse-racing event
  • horse-racing track
  • horse-racing industry
  • horse-racing meeting

Phrases

  • go horse-racing
  • bet on horse-racing
  • watch horse-racing
  • take up horse-racing

Prepositions

  • at a horse-racing event
  • in horse-racing
  • on horse-racing (bet on)

Etymology

Old EnglishOld NorseEnglish

The sport of racing horses dates back thousands of years, with evidence of chariot and mounted racing in ancient Greece, Rome, Egypt, and Babylon. Modern organized horse racing took shape in England during the 17th and 18th centuries, when race meetings at Newmarket and other tracks became formalized events with standardized rules. The compound word 'horse-racing' appeared in English writing in the early 1700s, combining 'horse' (from Old English 'hors') with 'racing' (from Old Norse 'ras,' meaning a running or swift movement).