astride
Americanpreposition
-
with a leg on each side of; straddling.
She sat astride the horse.
-
on both sides of.
Budapest lies astride the river.
-
in a dominant position within.
Napoleon stands astride the early 19th century like a giant.
adverb
adjective
-
with a leg on either side
-
with the legs far apart
preposition
-
with a leg on either side of
-
with a part on both sides of
Etymology
Origin of astride
Explanation
When you're astride something, you have one leg on each of it. A typical rider on a horse is astride the horse. This is a word for a physical position that is easiest to visualize by picturing riders atop horses. While you can ride a horse sidesaddle — with both legs on one side — the usual (and safer) way to ride a horse is astride. When you're astride, you have one leg on each side of a horse: you've mounted the horse. If you climb a fence, you're probably going to find yourself astride the fence for a moment before you get to the other side.
Vocabulary lists containing astride
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
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List 4
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The Alchemist
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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.
In the ad he seems to stand astride the world, a 2010s Michael Bay–style epic zoom-out to space revealing the global reach of both his vacant stare and the Salesforce CRM.
From Slate • Feb. 8, 2026
Somaliland sits astride one of the world's most strategic maritime choke points, flanked by multiple conflicts in the Horn of Africa and the Middle East.
From Barron's • Jan. 13, 2026
Meitamei Olol Dapash, a Maasai elder with an American Ph.D., says the camp sits astride a path that some migratory wildebeest and zebra use to cross the Sand River in search of green grass.
From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 20, 2025
She rode the horseshoe back to the main stage and did “Tyrant” astride a golden mechanical bull accompanied by two bull heads on swiveling robot arms.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 29, 2025
Bobby Moch sat astride the stern, hunched forward, pounding the wood, screaming words no one could hear.
From "The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics" by Daniel James Brown
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
