gait

American  

[geyt] / geɪt /

noun

gaits plural

1. a manner of walking, stepping, or running.

   Synonyms:

   carriage, bearing, stride, step, walk

2. any of the manners in which a horse moves, as a walk, trot, canter, gallop, or rack.

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verb (used with object)

1. to teach a specified gait or gaits to (a horse).

gait British  

/ ɡeɪt /

noun

1. manner of walking or running; bearing

2. (used esp of horses and dogs) the pattern of footsteps at various speeds, as the walk, trot, canter, etc, each pattern being distinguished by a particular rhythm and footfall

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verb

1. (tr) to teach (a horse) a particular gait

Usage

What does gait mean? Gait means the way a person or animal walks or runs. Gait is often used in the context of horses and show dogs when analyzing how they walk, trot, and run. The human gait is studied in medicine and in sports like running. Gait can also be used as a verb meaning to teach a horse a particular gait. Example: You can tell that his gait is affected by a limp.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• gaits
  plural

Etymology

Origin of gait

1500–10; Scots, Middle English spelling variant of gate ¹ in various senses

Explanation

Some people have a very distinct gait, or manner of walking or running, which allows you to recognize them from far away. Walking with two legs is a pretty straightforward task, so most of us (with the exception of runners) don’t think about our own gait very often. However, when four legs are involved, the definition of gait becomes more complex. In horseback riding, gait is used to refer to the particular sequence or pattern of footsteps that the horse is using. Well-known gaits include the trot, the gallop, and the canter.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

gait gaits

When humans adopted an upright bipedal gait, the spine retained these functions.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 11, 2026

To understand the mechanics of the horse’s gait, his team placed a series of cameras along a stretch of dirt road on what would later become the university’s campus.

From Slate ● May 25, 2026

Security systems will read your face, as well as your gait, heart rate and physiology while allowing you to keep moving.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 15, 2026

The 6-foot-6 Long Beach native, with an outside hitter’s rocket arm and the gazelle-like gait, was considered the nation’s No. 2 overall recruit out of Warren High in Downey.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 1, 2026

Now she careened toward Jinny too, in her lopsided gait.

From "Orphan Island" by Laurel Snyder

“All states, shapes, shades and gaits are welcome.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 22, 2025

Dressage is the oldest equestrian discipline, and sees rider and horse perform a series of movements to music across the gaits of walk, trot and canter.

From BBC ● Dec. 5, 2024

"We have thus confirmed the hypothesis that efficient gaits can be realized by exploiting natural oscillation patterns," explains Prof.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 18, 2024

Atlantic puffins — clownish seabirds with colorful bills and waddling gaits — had their second consecutive rebound year for fledging chicks after suffering a catastrophic 2021, said scientists who monitor the birds.

From Seattle Times ● Aug. 29, 2023

No doubt it was the similarity of their gaits that prompted Penelope’s memory, but the two had little else in common: For example, Dr. Westminster was extremely clever and Bertha was not clever at all.

From "The Unseen Guest" by Maryrose Wood

Related Words

• bearing