paddock

¹

[pad-uhk]

noun

1. a small, usually enclosed field near a stable or barn for pasturing or exercising animals.

2. the enclosure in which horses are saddled and mounted before a race.

3. Australian.,  any enclosed field or pasture.

verb (used with object)

1. to confine or enclose in or as in a paddock.

paddock

²

[pad-uhk]

noun

1. Archaic.,  a frog or toad.

paddock

¹

/ ˈpædək /

noun

1. a small enclosed field, often for grazing or training horses, usually near a house or stable

2. (in horse racing) the enclosure in which horses are paraded and mounted before a race, together with the accompanying rooms

3. (in motor racing) an area near the pits where cars are worked on before races

4. any area of fenced land

5. a playing field

6. informal,  a stockroute or roadside area offering feed to sheep and cattle in dry times

verb

1. (tr) to confine (horses, etc) in a paddock

paddock

²

/ ˈpædək /

noun

1. Also called (Scot): puddock. archaic,  a frog or toad

Word History and Origins

Origin of paddock¹

1540–50; variant of Middle English parrok, with r heard as flapped d; Old English pearroc enclosure, originally fence. See park

Origin of paddock²

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English paddok(e), derivative of early Middle English pad “toad” (compare English dialectal pad “frog”); akin to Dutch, Low German pad, Old Norse padda; -ock

Word History and Origins

Origin of paddock¹

C17: variant of dialect parrock, from Old English pearruc enclosure, of Germanic origin. See _park

Origin of paddock²

C12: from pad toad, probably from Old Norse padda; see _-ock

Example Sentences

His challenge caught the eye of Aston Martin, who invited Burgess to a garage and paddock tour in Saudi.

From BBC

Funeral prayers began in a paddock nearby, with people grieving in front of several bodies covered by blankets.

From BBC

And then there is just general gossip between people in the paddock.

From BBC

It's up and down the grid in the paddock.

From BBC

"I needed to vent... to get my frustration off my chest," she said, and her choice was either to tell the sheep in her paddock, or speak to what she called her "cheer squad".

From BBC

Related Words

• oval 
• track