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Glite Dictionary
ahorseback

ahorseback

9.9
Riding on the back of a horse
  • adverb
  • /əˈhɔrsˌbæk/
  • Archaic
translation icon : a caballo
  • She rode ahorseback through the beautiful countryside.

Examples

  • The soldiers rode ahorseback through the valley at dawn.

  • Villagers watched as the messenger arrived ahorseback with urgent news.

  • He preferred to travel ahorseback rather than by carriage.

  • He loves to travel ahorseback whenever he can.

  • The soldiers rode ahorseback through the valley at dawn.

  • Villagers watched as the messenger arrived ahorseback with urgent news.

  • He preferred to travel ahorseback rather than by carriage.

Synonyms

ahorse
vsahorseback
  • Archaic
9.9

To ride on a horse

is identical in sense but differs in written form by length
horseback
vsahorseback
2.3

Riding on the back of a horse

is the same in meaning but uses a different word form

Surface Forms

ahorseback positive

Morphology

ahorseback = horseback (semi-transparent) = a + horse + back

The structure is a- + horseback and the meaning 'on horseback' is directly recoverable, but the prefix 'a-' meaning 'on' is archaic/poetic and may not be immediately recognized by average learners.

Etymology

Ahorseback comes from the old prefix a- meaning 'on', used in words like ashore and aboard, joined to horseback ('horse' + 'back'). So ahorseback simply means 'on the back of a horse', which is why we use it to say someone is riding.