Dictionary.com
definitions
  • synonyms

cayuse

[kahy-yoos, kahy-oos]
See more synonyms for cayuse on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. Western U.S. a horse, especially an Indian pony.
  2. Also called cayuse wind. Northwestern U.S. a cold wind blowing from the east.
Show More

Origin of cayuse

1830–40, Americanism; named after the Cayuse

Cayuse

[kahy-yoos, kahy-oos]
noun, plural Cay·us·es, (especially collectively) Cay·use.
  1. a member of a tribe of North American Indians now living in Oregon.
Show More
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for cayuse

Historical Examples

  • Lucky the cayuse who happens to be the right size for his harness.

    A Woman Tenderfoot

    Grace Gallatin Seton-Thompson

  • You wish to know the name of the man who Union-Jacked your cayuse?

  • Powder Face is woman broke, an' gentle as any cayuse can get.

    Prairie Flowers

    James B. Hendryx

  • Not much on looks, Bill, but a cayuse don't cover ground on his looks.

  • My horse, I knew, could outrace any cayuse of the Sioux band.

British Dictionary definitions for cayuse

cayuse

noun
  1. Western US and Canadian a small Native American pony used by cowboys
Show More

Word Origin

C19: from a Chinookan language
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for cayuse

n.

"horse, Indian pony," 1841, American English, said to be a Chinook (native Pacific Northwest) word; also the name of an Indian group and language (1825), of unknown origin.

Show More
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper