Kentucky Derby

American

noun

Trademark.

a horse race for three-year-olds, run annually since 1875, on the first Saturday in May, at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky.: the first race in the Triple Crown.

Kentucky Derby British

noun

a race for three-year-old horses run annually since 1875 at Louisville, Kentucky

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Kentucky Derby Cultural

The most famous American horse race, held each spring at Churchill Downs racetrack in Kentucky.

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.

They played to the paparazzi, vamping at high-profile events including the Kentucky Derby and the White House Correspondents’ Assn. dinner, and hammed it up in “caught off-guard” moments at the supermarket or over lunch.

From Los Angeles Times • May 18, 2026

Trainer Cherie DeVaux says Golden Tempo won’t run in the Preakness because the horse needs more time to recover after the Kentucky Derby.

From Los Angeles Times • May 11, 2026

After becoming the first woman to win the Kentucky Derby, her family expects more victories.

From Los Angeles Times • May 6, 2026

Plus, Spirit Airlines prepares to shut down, and horse racing’s leading trainer wants an undisputed Kentucky Derby win.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 1, 2026

Down in Louisville to cover the Kentucky Derby, Oscar Otis found that he was about the only journalist who thought Seabiscuit could win.

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