horse trading

American  

noun

1. the act or fact of conducting a shrewd exchange or engaging in a horse trade; bargaining.

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horse trading British  

noun

1. hard bargaining to obtain equal concessions by both sides in a dispute

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horse trading Idioms  

1. Negotiation marked by hard bargaining and shrewd exchange. For example, The restaurant owner is famous for his horse trading; he's just exchanged a month of free dinners for a month of free television commercials. This expression alludes to the notorious shrewdness of horse traders, who literally bought and sold horses. [c. 1820]

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Etymology

Origin of horse trading

An Americanism dating back to 1820–30

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

horse trading

The seat count could trickle in for days, followed by weeks or months of horse trading to come up with a coalition that can govern.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 27, 2026

That means extensive glad-handing and horse trading before the famously blunt Milei can get started on a daunting legislative agenda.

From Barron's ● Oct. 28, 2025

The SNP leadership campaign's been a short, sharp affair - and it’s already shown John Swinney's skill in horse trading.

From BBC ● May 6, 2024

Archaeological analysis of a near unique animal cemetery discovered in London nearly 30 years ago has revealed the international scale of horse trading by the elites of late medieval and Tudor England.

From Science Daily ● Mar. 22, 2024

I had very poor success that summer in my new enterprise, horse trading.

From A Texas Cow Boy or, fifteen years on the hurricane deck of a Spanish pony, taken from real life by Chas. A. Siringo

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