horseshoe

horseshoe
horseshoe late 14c. (early 13c. as a proper name), from HORSE (Cf. horse) + SHOE (Cf. shoe). Horseshoes as another name for the game of quoits, attested by 1822.
HORSE-SHOES, the game of coits, or quoits--because sometimes actually played with horse-shoes. [John Trotter Brockett, "A Glossary of North Country Words," 1829]
The belief that finding a horseshoe by chance is lucky is attested from late 14c., and the practice of nailing one above a doorway to prevent a witch entering therein was common in London down to c.1800. Of a type of bend in a river, 1770, Amer.Eng. As a type of crab, from 1775.

Etymology dictionary. 2014.

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  • Horseshoe — steht für Binion’s Horseshoe Hotel in Las Vegas, USA Horseshoe Beach Ort in Florida, USA Golden Horseshoe Region in Ontario, Kanada Horseshoe Canyon Formation in der Provinz Alberta, Kanada Horseshoe (Achterbahn), eine Fahrfigur einer Achterbahn… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Horseshoe — Horse shoe , n. 1. A shoe for horses, consisting of a narrow plate of iron in form somewhat like the letter U, nailed to a horse s hoof. [1913 Webster] 2. Anything shaped like a horsehoe, such as a U shaped bend in a river. [1913 Webster] 3. (Zo[ …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • horseshoe — [hôrs′sho͞o΄, hôr′sho͞o] n. [ME horscho, contr. of horsis sho] 1. a flat, U shaped metal plate nailed to a horse s hoof for protection 2. anything shaped like this 3. [pl., with sing. v.] a game in which the players toss horseshoes at two facing… …   English World dictionary

  • horseshoe — ► NOUN ▪ an iron shoe for a horse in the form of an extended circular arc …   English terms dictionary

  • Horseshoe — For other uses, see Horseshoe (disambiguation). Modern horseshoes are most commonly made of steel and nailed into the hoof wall …   Wikipedia

  • Horseshoe — Cette page d’homonymie répertorie les différents sujets et articles partageant un même nom. Horseshoe signifie le fer à cheval. Horseshoe Bend  Horseshoe Bridge est un pont routier australien situé da …   Wikipédia en Français

  • horseshoe — horseshoer, n. /hawrs shooh , hawrsh /, n., v., horseshoed, horseshoeing, adj. n. 1. a U shaped metal plate, plain or with calks, nailed to a horse s hoof to protect it from being injured by hard or rough surfaces. 2. something U shaped, as a… …   Universalium

  • horseshoe — noun Date: 14th century 1. a usually U shaped band of iron fitted and nailed to the rim of a horse s hoof to protect it 2. something (as a valley) shaped like a horseshoe 3. plural a game like quoits played with horseshoes or with horseshoe… …   New Collegiate Dictionary

  • horseshoe — [[t]hɔ͟ː(r)sʃuː[/t]] horseshoes 1) N COUNT A horseshoe is a piece of metal shaped like a U, which is fixed with nails to the bottom of a horse s foot in order to protect it. 2) N COUNT A horseshoe is an object in the shape of a horseshoe which is …   English dictionary

  • horseshoe — UK [ˈhɔː(r)sˌʃuː] / US [ˈhɔrsˌʃu] noun [countable] Word forms horseshoe : singular horseshoe plural horseshoes 1) a curved piece of iron fastened to the bottom of a horse s hoof 2) an object in the shape of a horseshoe, believed to bring good… …   English dictionary

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