Houyhnhnm

American

[hoo-in-uhm, hwin-uhm, win-] / huˈɪn əm, ˈʰwɪn əm, ˈwɪn- /

noun

(in Swift'sGulliver's Travels ) one of a race of horses endowed with reason, who rule the Yahoos, a race of degraded, brutish creatures having human form.

Etymology

Origin of Houyhnhnm

1726; apparently echoic; cf. whinny

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:

Houyhnhnm

Accept our humble lays, And let each grateful Houyhnhnm neigh thy praise.

From The Poetical Works of Alexander Pope, Volume 2 by George Gilfillan

"Oh, it was—it was!" whooped the Houyhnhnm from out the cellar.

From The Storm Centre by Mary Noailles Murfree

The author conducted by a Houyhnhnm to his house.

From Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift

Houyhnhnm, whin′im, n. one of the noble rational horse race in Gulliver's Travels.

From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 2 of 4: E-M) by Various

That will do for the Houyhnhnm Gazette.—Do you ever wonder why poets talk so much about flowers?

From Complete Project Gutenberg Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr. Works by Oliver Wendell Holmes

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023