any of the three administrative divisions into which Yorkshire, England, is divided, namely, North Riding, East Riding, and West Riding.
any similar administrative division elsewhere.
(capital when part of a name) any of the three former administrative divisions of Yorkshire: North Riding, East Riding and West Riding
(in Canada) a parliamentary constituency
(in New Zealand) a rural electorate for local government
before 1000; Middle English (noun, adj.); Old English rīdende (adj.). See ride, -ing 1, -ing 2
1250–1300; Middle English triding, Old English *thriding < Old Norse thridjungr third part; t- (of ME), variant of th- (of OE), lost by assimilation to -t in east, west, which commonly preceded
Use the word riding for the sport of maneuvering a horse while sitting on its back. So when your friend invites you to go riding, you'd better be prepared to climb up into a saddle. You can also call this sport horseback riding, or if you want to get really fancy, equestrianism. Riding involves, of course, staying perched on the back of a horse while it trots, canters, or gallops along. There are a lot of additional variations on riding, including horse racing, rodeo events, and dressage, which involves dance-like movements that are judged on how athletic and graceful the horse is and how relaxed the rider appears.
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Riding a wave of hype and capital, quantum computing was thrust back into the spotlight last month as the U.S. government made a $2 billion bet on the technology.
From Barron's • Jun. 9, 2026
Appeared in the May 19, 2026, print edition as 'Obscure Fund Has a Lot Riding On SpaceX'.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 18, 2026
Riding the La Grande XL costs $15 for a 10-minute general admission ride, but you can spend $80 for a private gondola for up to six people and an express lane.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 12, 2026
Citizens Advice Hull and East Riding is running a series of weekly drop in events across the region where they will distribute 1,000 of the energy-saving packs.
From BBC • Mar. 17, 2026
“I can’t really blame you, though. Riding the horns will do that to the best of us. How did things go?”
From "The Name of the Wind" by Patrick Rothfuss
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.
