Pony

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˈpəʊni/

Definitions

1. A small horse, typically standing less than 14.2 hands high, often used for children to ride or in showing competitions
2. A small equine animal that is generally under a certain height and is often kept for riding by children or displayed in exhibitions
3. An animal resembling a horse but smaller in stature, frequently utilized for youth riding lessons or as a show competitor

Etymology: The word that now brings to mind a child's first ride on a patient, shaggy animal once traveled through a chain of foals. Its ancestor is Latin "pullus," meaning young of an animal, which gave Late Latin "pullanus" and then Old French "poulenet," meaning "little foal." That French diminutive seems to have reached Scotland as "powny," and English took it up in the 1650s; the earliest recorded use dates to 1659. The word is a doublet of "foal" and "pullus," meaning the same root arrived in English by two separate routes. The meaning then shrank in a surprising direction. In the 19th century, "pony" came to mean a small serving of alcohol, and specifically a quarter pint, because of the small size of the measure. A drinker ordering one was, in effect, asking for a little horse's worth of drink.

Synonyms: horse, foal, stallion, mare, gelding