one-horse

[wuhn-hawrs, -hohrs]

adjective

1. using or having only a single horse.

   a one-horse carriage.

2. small and unimportant; limited.

   a one-horse town.

one-horse

adjective

1. drawn by or using one horse

2. informal,  (prenominal) small or obscure

   a one-horse town

Word History and Origins

Origin of one-horse¹

First recorded in 1740–50

Example Sentences

He was born in Charkhari, a state in British India, in what he describes as a "one-horse town".

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The Dodgers couldn’t make this a one-horse race.

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As a child in a "one-horse town in South Carolina," Smalls was drawn to Shakespeare and prose, spending time in his mother’s rose garden, despite the skepticism of those around him.

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"Things can change really quickly, but as of now it's a one-horse or two-horse race for the Grand Slams."

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The danger is that it also exposes Renaissance as a one-horse show, totally dependent on the president's interventions to make any kind of mark.

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