starting gate

American

noun

any of various types of movable barriers for lining up and giving an equal start to the entries in a horse or dog race.

starting gate British

noun

a movable barrier so placed on the starting line of a racecourse that the raising of it releases all the contestants simultaneously
the US name for starting stalls

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of starting gate

First recorded in 1895–1900

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.

See Examples For:

starting gate

Each Derby candidate has only one or two chances remaining to earn one of the 20 stalls in the oversized starting gate at Churchill Downs.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 6, 2026

"When I think back on my crash, I didn't stand in the starting gate unaware of the potential consequences. I knew what I was doing. I chose to take a risk," she added.

From BBC ● Feb. 17, 2026

With one surgically rebuilt knee and a completely torn ACL in the other, the 41-year-old Vonn gutted her way to the starting gate and had a real chance of medaling before her violent crash.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 14, 2026

Vonn crashed just 13 seconds after leaving the starting gate, losing control and falling hard on the course.

From Salon ● Feb. 8, 2026

He took the rider and Seabiscuit out to the starting gate.

From "Seabiscuit: An American Legend" by Laura Hillenbrand

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