shanks' mare

American

Or shank's mare

noun

one's own legs, especially as a means of moving from one place to another.

The only way we can get there is by shanks' mare.

idioms

ride shanks' mare, to go on foot rather than ride; walk.

It was such a delightful day that we decided to ride shanks' mare to the fair.

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.

Traveling by armed Huey helicopter, C-118 transport, Jeep, limousine and shanks' mare, the Vice President�who bore the code name Northwest-coursed from the Delta to the Demilitarized Zone on a threefold mission.

From Time Magazine Archive

They packed tents, food, guns, building materials, ammunition into the steaming wastes by boat, truck, muleback, and shanks' mare.

From Time Magazine Archive

The students had arrived by stagecoach, farm wagon and shanks' mare.

From Time Magazine Archive

The center of a 28,000-acre national park, Haleakala can be traversed by shanks' mare or mule train, a three-day mountain high.

From Time Magazine Archive

The going was too good for shanks' mare to-day.

From Second String by Hope, Anthony

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023