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Glite Dictionary
🐎 A horse's back ⛰️ A narrow ridge 🏇 Riding a horse
horseback

horseback

1 8.4
A narrow ridge of hills with a thin top
  • noun
  • /ˈhɔrsˌbæk/
translation icon : cresta

Examples

  • But beyond the welcoming geography of the first touch of each other in the small of the back as the two of them danced together stood twenty horseback miles between the Doig place and Moss Agate.

    Fiction book (1993)

  • The children rode along the narrow ridge, laughing as they sat on horseback enjoying the view of the valley below.

  • While exploring the hills, we found a beautiful trail that resembled a gently sloping horseback leading into the forest.

  • The tour guide mentioned that the hills formed a natural horseback where hikers could stop and rest.

Synonyms

saddleback
vshorseback
4 8.6

A low ridge between two peaks that looks like a seat

sits as a narrow crest rather than a low dip between peaks
hogback
vshorseback
  • Specialized
1 9.9

A long narrow ridge with steep sides that looks like an animal's curved back

has gentler slopes and a smoother crest instead

Compounds

horseback riding
23 2.7

An activity of sitting on a horse while it moves for sport or pleasure

horseback rider
1 3.1

A person on a horse, often for sport or travel

Surface Forms

horseback singular
horsebacks plural

Morphology

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

The compound is clear, but the meaning 'ridge resembling a horse's back' is a metaphorical extension rather than a literal description.

Etymology

Horseback for a narrow ridge comes from the picture of a long, rounded hill that looks like a horse's back. That's why a landscape horseback means a ridge or crest that resembles the top of a horse.