cockhorse
Definition
Noun: 1. A toy horse: Specifically, a simple toy representing a horse, traditionally including a rocking horse or even an adult's knee used for a child to ride on. 2. A child's plaything imitating a horse: Any object, often a stick or a simple figure, that a child pretends is a horse.
Examples of Usage
- Noun:
- The old wooden cockhorse was his favorite toy. (The old wooden toy horse was his favorite toy.)
- Grandfather bounced the toddler on his knee, singing "Ride a cockhorse to Banbury Cross." (Grandfather bounced the toddler on his knee, singing the nursery rhyme.)
Advanced Usage
- The word is now considered archaic or literary in modern English. It is most commonly encountered in the classic nursery rhyme "Ride a Cockhorse to Banbury Cross."
- It can be used figuratively to describe something that is a favorite hobby or preoccupation, though this usage is very rare.
- His vintage car was his cockhorse, his pride and joy. (His vintage car was his favorite possession, his pride and joy.)
Variants and Related Words
- Hobbyhorse (noun): A more common modern term for a toy horse on a stick. It also means a favorite topic or idea that a person talks about repeatedly.
- Rocking horse (noun): A specific type of toy horse mounted on rockers or springs for a child to ride.
Synonyms
- Toy horse
- Hobbyhorse (in the context of a toy)
- Stick horse
Related Phrases and Idioms
- Ride a cockhorse to Banbury Cross: A line from a well-known English nursery rhyme. The phrase itself is an idiom for a child's imaginary ride.
Noun
-
anything used as a toy horse (such as a rocking horse or one knee of an adult)
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