foal
Americannoun
-
foals
plural
verb (used with or without object)
-
foals,
present (3rd person singular)
-
foaled,
past participle, past
-
foaling
present participle
noun
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
foalsimple
-
foalssimple
-
have foaledperfect
-
has foaledperfect
-
am foalingprogressive
-
are foalingprogressive
-
is foalingprogressive
-
have been foalingperfect progressive
-
has been foalingperfect progressive
Past
-
foaledsimple
-
had foaledperfect
-
was foalingprogressive
-
were foalingprogressive
-
had been foalingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of foal
before 950; (noun) Middle English fole, Old English fola; cognate with Old High German folo ( German Fohlen ); akin to Latin pullus young animal, Greek pôlos foal; (v.) Middle English, derivative of the noun
Explanation
A foal is a baby horse. Most horses give birth to only one foal at a time, though occasionally they have two. You can use the word foal for a horse that's younger than one year old — after turning one, a foal becomes a yearling. Foals can be either male, also called a colt, or female, also called a filly. When a mare, or adult female horse, has a baby, you can say she foals. The Old English root word, fola, means "foal" or "colt."
Vocabulary lists containing foal
The Horse and His Boy
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 War That Saved My Life
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!
"Rachel the Clever"
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.
See Examples For:
Each new foal bore the promise of outperforming a carefully chosen set of parents.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 6, 2026
Two horses were dead when he arrived, including a foal that appeared stillborn or miscarried.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 22, 2026
A brown foal with a white stripe on its muzzle teetered on toothpick legs.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 7, 2025
However, the National Centre for Birds of Prey believed it was "most unlikely" that sea eagles would be capable of flying off with a foal.
From BBC ● Sep. 3, 2025
Two weeks before, unforgettably terribly, there had been a unicorn foal, pure gold, stillborn.
From "Impossible Creatures" by Katherine Rundell
Horse-obsessed Gurbanguly has churned out numerous books about Akhal-Tekes and even penned a rap song in honour of one of his foals.
From Barron's ● Jun. 5, 2026
The consultants recommended that racing emulate the NBA and show off lifestyle content—“from foals at the farm to fashion and food at the races”—that would help the sport look cool.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 1, 2026
April Rose Pengilly's Instagram showed her in the Hampshire national park petting foals and donkeys - which is not permitted under the area's rules.
From BBC ● May 15, 2024
A herd of about 40 mares, stallions and foals graze lazily on dry grass over the rugged Stolovi mountain in Serbia's southwest, one out of three such bands of wild horses in the Balkan country.
From Reuters ● Sep. 1, 2023
It is a pure white, horned horse when fully grown, though the foals are initially golden and turn silver before achieving maturity.
From "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" by J.K. Rowling
He also gave sworn friend Jamuqa for a mount Toqto’a’s yellowish white mare with a black tail and mane, a mare that had not foaled for several years.
From Textbooks ● Apr. 19, 2023
Knicks Go was foaled on Jan. 29, 2016, meaning he actually turns 6 on Saturday.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 28, 2022
All horses have the same birthday, January 1, regardless of when they were foaled.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 5, 2021
According to one report, about 20,000 thoroughbreds are foaled every year in the U.S., and the Kentucky Derby takes only 20 three-year-olds.
From Washington Times ● Sep. 28, 2020
‘Away now, Shadowfax! Run, greatheart, run as you have never run before! Now we are come to the lands where you were foaled, and every stone you know. Run now! Hope is in speed!’
From "The Two Towers" by J. R. R. Tolkien
That includes avoiding peak foaling periods and hot weather that would stress the horses.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 7, 2025
“The foaling was filled with ease and elegance and both mom and baby are in excellent health and exude happiness,” a post on the site Zenyatta.com said.
From Washington Times ● Jun. 12, 2023
“This particular herd is foaling now and pregnant now,” Jessica Blome, their lawyer, told Du on Wednesday.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 27, 2022
“If we have a mare foaling at 1 a.m. and another at 5 a.m., she is up watching both of them. She knows every horse she owns and there are no shortcuts with her.”
From New York Times ● Apr. 30, 2015
Noah, the foaling groom at Claiborne, had summed it up about as well as anyone when he pulled Seabiscuit into the world: “Runty little thing.”
From "Seabiscuit: An American Legend" by Laura Hillenbrand
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.
