corral
Americannoun
-
an enclosure or pen for horses, cattle, etc.
-
a circular enclosure formed by wagons during an encampment, as by covered wagons crossing the North American plains in the 19th century, for defense against attack.
verb (used with object)
-
to confine in or as if in a corral.
-
Informal.
-
to seize; capture.
-
to collect, gather, or garner.
to corral votes.
-
-
to form (wagons) into a corral.
noun
-
an enclosure for confining cattle or horses
-
(formerly) a defensive enclosure formed by a ring of covered wagons
verb
-
to drive into and confine in or as in a corral
-
informal to capture
Etymology
Origin of corral
1575–85; < Spanish < Late Latin *currāle enclosure for carts, equivalent to Latin curr ( us ) wagon, cart (derivative of currere to run) + -āle, neuter of -ālis -al 1
Explanation
A corral is a pen for horses, cows, or other livestock. If your sheep get out of the corral, you'll have to take the dogs out to help you round them up again. The word corral comes either from the Spanish word corro, which means ring, or from the Old Portuguese word curral, meaning pen or enclosure. As a verb, corral means to gather up or collect. If you're in charge of the big library book sale, you'll have to corral lots of people into helping you. If you make a defensive circle with wagons or other vehicles, you have also corralled the wagons.
Vocabulary lists containing corral
Cinco de Mayo: Words to Celebrate Mexico
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
The Distance Between Us
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
The First Rule of Punk
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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.
Frederick Weyerhaeuser, a German immigrant, brought order to Wisconsin’s pineries after the Civil War by using river booms to corral and sort the thousands of logs floated down to sawmills each spring.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 23, 2026
That proved costly less than a minute later when Markanich, racing up the center, got behind Galaxy defender Mauricio Cuevas to corral a long ball from Joaquín Pereyra, then beat keeper JT Marcinkowski cleanly.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 5, 2026
Speaking on Good Morning Ulster, she described how "in many cases" social media companies are "like the wild west and trying to corral it and control it can be incredibly difficult".
From BBC • Mar. 24, 2026
“I don’t think she has been able to corral that bureaucracy.”
From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 17, 2025
Off to the side, the Crunks and Marietta tried to corral all the children away from the flames.
From "Dactyl Hill Squad" by Daniel José Older
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.
