bridle hand

American  

noun

1. (of a horseback rider) the hand, usually the left hand, that holds both reins or both pairs of reins, leaving the other hand free to manage a whip, crop, lariat, or the like.

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Etymology

Origin of bridle hand

First recorded in 1570–80

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

bridle hand

While she guided her horse with her bridle hand, Julie perceived her unbutton her holster pipe, and seize and cock a Colt's revolver.

From Annette, the Metis Spy by Collins, J. E. (Joseph Edmund)

A turn of the wrist of the bridle hand, one slight jerk of the fingers, and Etheldene’s horse had turned on a pivot, we might almost say, and the danger was over.

From From Squire to Squatter A Tale of the Old Land and the New by Stables, Gordon

Farron carefully wrapped the blanket about her tiny feet and legs, and with a prayer on his lips and a clasp of the sergeant's bridle hand he bade him go.

From Starlight Ranch and Other Stories of Army Life on the Frontier by King, Charles

The weather at that time was cheerless, generally with a gray film of cloud spread over the sky, and a bleak wind, often cold enough to make my bridle hand quite numb.

From Introduction to the Science of Sociology by Park, Robert Ezra

An almost imperceptible easing and feeling of the bridle hand, so as to preserve the natural delicacy of the horse's mouth.

From The Barb and the Bridle A Handbook of Equitation for Ladies, and Manual of Instruction in the Science of Riding, from the Preparatory Suppling Exercises by Moustache, Vielle