foal
Americannoun
verb (used with or without object)
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
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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
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The War That Saved My Life
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"Rachel the Clever"
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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.
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
People don't always realise they can be taking on a near-lifetime commitment, he said, as a donkey foal can live for up to 50 years.
From BBC ● May 16, 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
At Torak’s feet lay a dead foal, its small hooves still crusted with river clay from its final drink.
From "Wolf Brother" by Michelle Paver
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
The team of scientists also investigated the long-term consequences of young foals being treated with antibiotics.
From BBC ● Aug. 7, 2024
More than 260 foals are among the 2,643 animals that have been rounded up for transport to government holding pens since July 9, the agency said on its website Saturday.
From Seattle Times ● Aug. 5, 2023
Today he had managed to capture two unicorn foals.
From "Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire" by J. K. Rowling
If that were to happen, the thoroughbred breed would be gone in the United States, as thoroughbreds are foaled almost exclusively for racing.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 1, 2024
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
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
"Newmarket - where Frankel was foaled and forged," proclaims the promotional video at the National Horseracing Museum in the Suffolk town.
From BBC ● May 4, 2013
‘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
Leigh says the bureau has erroneously concluded that peak foaling season is the same for all herds — from March 1 through June 30.
From Seattle Times ● Aug. 8, 2023
“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
As Our Josephina began the unenviable act of foaling, the foal’s emerging hooves looked alarmingly large.
From Washington Post ● Apr. 29, 2015
No fox Or foaling doe would be so sloppy.
From "Jazz" by Toni Morrison
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.
