riding
noun
the act of a person or thing that rides.
riding
1 American
[rahy-ding]
/ ˈraɪ dɪŋ /
noun
adjective
riding
2
American
[rahy-ding]
/ ˈraɪ dɪŋ /
noun
-
any of the three administrative divisions into which Yorkshire, England, is divided, namely, North Riding, East Riding, and West Riding.
-
any similar administrative division elsewhere.
Riding
3
American
[rahy-ding]
/ ˈraɪ dɪŋ /
noun
riding
1
British
/ ˈraɪdɪŋ /
noun
riding
2
British
/ ˈraɪdɪŋ /
noun
-
(capital when part of a name) any of the three former administrative divisions of Yorkshire: North Riding, East Riding and West Riding
-
(in Canada) a parliamentary constituency
-
(in New Zealand) a rural electorate for local government
Etymology
Origin of riding1
before 1000; Middle English (noun, adj.); Old English rīdende (adj.). See ride, -ing 1, -ing 2
Origin of riding2
1250–1300; Middle English triding, Old English *thriding < Old Norse thridjungr third part; t- (of ME), variant of th- (of OE), lost by assimilation to -t in east, west, which commonly preceded
Explanation
Use the word riding for the sport of maneuvering a horse while sitting on its back. So when your friend invites you to go riding, you'd better be prepared to climb up into a saddle. You can also call this sport horseback riding, or if you want to get really fancy, equestrianism. Riding involves, of course, staying perched on the back of a horse while it trots, canters, or gallops along. There are a lot of additional variations on riding, including horse racing, rodeo events, and dressage, which involves dance-like movements that are judged on how athletic and graceful the horse is and how relaxed the rider appears.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Like other electrical-equipment suppliers, Schneider has been riding a wave of demand for products in data centers sparked by artificial intelligence, and has moved to redeploy the windfall to dealmaking.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026
The bond market provided its own warning on what may be overexuberance for an industry group riding the artificial-intelligence build-out — neoclouds, which are pure-play providers of cloud services.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 16, 2026
Bostock, 29, also earned a bronze for riding in the earlier rounds of the team pursuit.
From BBC ● Oct. 15, 2026
Wall Street is riding a record-high wave of positive corporate guidance and expanding profit margins led by energy and tech.
From Barron's ● Oct. 12, 2026
I dreamed that I was riding a beautiful pony, up and down the country roads, and far back in the green rugged hills; even way up in the clouds—riding, riding, riding.
From "Summer of the Monkeys" by Wilson Rawls
The Electronic Combined Braking System links the front and rear anti-lock braking system, so that using either the front or rear brake engages both, according to the Riding Mode’s algorithms and the bike’s loaded weight.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 29, 2026
Riding with another person on the back is another common issue.
From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2026
Riding a wave of hype and capital, quantum computing was thrust back into the spotlight last month as the U.S. government made a $2 billion bet on the technology.
From Barron's ● Jun. 9, 2026
Riding the line of being just about to break, it’s so much fun.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 26, 2026
Riding my bike is one—I don’t feel angry when I’m riding.
From "Wayward Creatures" by Dayna Lorentz
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
