Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A smooth three-beat gait of a horse that is slower than a gallop but faster than a trot, in which the feet touch the ground in the three-beat sequence of near hind foot, off hind foot and near front foot, off front foot.
  • noun A ride on a horse moving with this gait.
  • intransitive verb To go or move at a canter.
  • intransitive verb To cause (a horse) to go at a canter.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun A moderate running pace of a horse; a moderate or easy gallop.
  • noun Figuratively, a brisk but easy movement of any kind; a running over or through; a run; a scamper.
  • To move in a canter: said of horses.
  • To ride a cantering horse.
  • To cause to canter.
  • noun In a sawmill, a machine placed over the carriage and used to cant or roll over the log on the carriage in making the first cuts; a canting-machine.
  • noun One who bids at an auction. See extract.
  • noun One who cants or whines; a professional beggar or vagrant.
  • noun One who talks cant, in any sense of the word; especially, a canting preacher.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • transitive verb To cause, as a horse, to go at a canter; to ride (a horse) at a canter.
  • noun A moderate and easy gallop adapted to pleasure riding.
  • noun A rapid or easy passing over.
  • intransitive verb To move in a canter.
  • noun One who cants or whines; a beggar.
  • noun One who makes hypocritical pretensions to goodness; one who uses canting language.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun A gait of a horse between a trot and a gallop, consisting of three beats and a "suspension" phase, where there are no feet on the ground. Also describing this gait on other four legged animals.
  • noun A ride on a horse at such speed.
  • verb To move at such pace.
  • noun One who cants or whines; a beggar.
  • noun One who makes hypocritical pretensions to goodness; one who uses canting language.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • verb ride at a cantering pace
  • verb ride at a canter
  • verb go at a canter, of horses
  • noun a smooth three-beat gait; between a trot and a gallop

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Ultimately from phrases such as Canterbury gallop, after Canterbury, England, toward which pilgrims rode at an easy pace.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

Short for Canterbury pace, from the supposed easy pace of medieval pilgrims to Canterbury.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

cant +‎ -er

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Examples

  • It has been remarked that an ugly seat at the canter is a sight that would spoil the finest landscape in the world, so a lady who desires to ride well should not be satisfied if she can merely stick on, like the lady in Fig. 101, but should try to ride correctly.

    The Horsewoman A Practical Guide to Side-Saddle Riding, 2nd. Ed. Alice M. Hayes 1873

  • After the pupil has mastered the difficulties of the trot, she will appreciate the enjoyable motion of an easy canter, which is the lady's pace _par excellence_.

    The Horsewoman A Practical Guide to Side-Saddle Riding, 2nd. Ed. Alice M. Hayes 1873

  • I am cabable of doing a lot of stuff, sport i play cricket, qualifications I got sales and management, bookkeeping, accounts, call canter, pastel,, help me to get a job in SA or out side the country

    unknown title 2009

  • I am cabable of doing a lot of stuff, sport i play cricket, qualifications I got sales and management, bookkeeping, accounts, call canter, pastel,, help me to get a job in SA or out side the country

    unknown title 2009

  • Although the Jarakay members initially thought of voting out call canter agent Nikki Dacullo-who was deemed the "weakest link" and who has the least contribution-the tribe opted to send home John because of his failing health.

    Blogged! 2008

  • He went off at a hand-gallop, and then pulled back into a long darting kind of canter, which Bilbah thought was quite the thing for a journey — anyhow, he never seemed to think of stopping it — went on mile after mile as if he was not going to pull up this side of sundown.

    Robbery Under Arms 2004

  • With regard to the representation of other "gaits" of the horse than that of the rapid gallop -- such as canter, trot, amble, rack, and walk -- I have no doubt that instantaneous photography can (and in practice does) furnish the painter with perfectly correct and at the same time useful and satisfactory poses of the horse's limbs.

    More Science From an Easy Chair 1888

  • He went off at a hand-gallop, and then pulled back into a long darting kind of canter, which Bilbah thought was quite the thing for a journey -- anyhow, he never seemed to think of stopping it -- went on mile after mile as if he was not going to pull up this side of sundown.

    Robbery under Arms; a story of life and adventure in the bush and in the Australian goldfields Rolf Boldrewood 1870

  • Not only this but Pizza is an in-bound call canter, and maybe what they will do is have my T4’s done right for next year.

    E.Jim Shannon E.Jim Shannon 2006

  • Not only this but Pizza is an in-bound call canter, and maybe what they will do is have my T4’s done right for next year.

    Archive 2006-03-01 E.Jim Shannon 2006

Comments

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  • Originally canterbury

    March 7, 2007