hoofbeat

[hoof-beet, hoof-]

noun

1. the sound made by an animal's hoof in walking, running, etc.

Word History and Origins

Origin of hoofbeat¹

First recorded in 1840–50; hoof + beat

Example Sentences

Lucky for Booth, instead of turning into the thicket, the troops remained on the road, passed the thicket, and rode until the sound of hoofbeats vanished in the distance.

From Literature

It mutes hoofbeats and limits whatever kickback might fly in the faces of trailing horses.

From Washington Times

We were too far away to hear their hoofbeats, but as they surged down the track, I thought I could feel the resounding force resonating through my bones.

From Literature

For example, in the rhyme “Banbury Cross,” the patsching eighth notes in measures 3 and 4 could be mimicking the hoofbeats of the horse.

From Literature

And you know the expression to encourage doctors to consider common explanations first — “When you hear hoofbeats, think horses not zebras”? Well, I suspect every single family is a herd of zebras.

From Washington Post