one-horse
Americanadjective
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using or having only a single horse.
a one-horse carriage.
-
small and unimportant; limited.
a one-horse town.
adjective
-
drawn by or using one horse
-
informal (prenominal) small or obscure
a one-horse town
Etymology
Origin of one-horse
First recorded in 1740–50
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.
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.
From Salon • Feb. 20, 2025
"Things can change really quickly, but as of now it's a one-horse or two-horse race for the Grand Slams."
From BBC • Jan. 26, 2025
“When the polls began it felt like a one-horse race, with Modi leading from the front. But now we are seeing some kind of shift,” political analyst Rasheed Kidwai said.
From Seattle Times • May 24, 2024
“It was a one-horse race for him to be mayor, but apparently someone was jealous,” said Kirk Petrakis, who, along with his wife, Hannah, owns the mayor of the town in Devon, England.
From Washington Post • Aug. 4, 2022
“I ain’t got no more cash money’n a one-horse farmer,” he insisted.
From "Cold Sassy Tree" by Olive Ann Burns
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
