one-horse

adjective

Definition of one-horsenext
as in jerkwater

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of one-horse This week's Far-Flung Postcard series takes you to a food stand in the one-horse town of Marikavalasa in India, where working women go to enjoy a treat and unwind in the evening before returning to the grind. — Brittney Melton, NPR, 11 Dec. 2025 And while this has now become a one-horse race, with that proposal carrying the day heading into a May 28 vote at the league’s next Board of Governors meeting, there are still more discussions — and possible changes — to come. — Sam Amick, New York Times, 5 May 2026 Koda grew up in this one-horse California town, while Sakai’s father’s work took her family to Tokyo, New York, Mexico City, Los Angeles and San Francisco. — Tara Duggan, San Francisco Chronicle, 28 July 2016 McCarthy moved to his current studio in 2012, and around then, bought land out in the Tehachapi Mountains to serve as Wild West backdrops, not unlike the early film studios buying up tumbleweed stables in Topanga to serve as facsimiles of one-horse towns to shoot westerns. — Nate Freeman, Vanity Fair, 25 Feb. 2026 See All Example Sentences for one-horse
Recent Examples of Synonyms for one-horse
  1. unimportant
  2. small
Adjective
  • Some photos have subtle variations, while others include figures who may have been deemed unimportant at the time.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 30 June 2026
  • This isn't because taxes were unimportant, but because the Declaration aimed to build a case for independence, not a comprehensive historical record.
    — Joseph Thorndike, Forbes.com, 29 June 2026
Definition of unimportant
Adjective
  • In contrast, instruments on the FireSat satellites will be able to detect small brush and roadside fires 16 feet across.
    — Eric Niiler, Los Angeles Times, 6 July 2026
  • At the Cannes Film Festival in May, the model Toni Garrn made a striking appearance in a blue-black bustier dress embroidered with small petals.
    — Amy Verner, Vogue, 6 July 2026
Definition of small

Browse Nearby Words

one-dimensional
one-horse
oneiromancies
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“One-horse.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/one-horse. Accessed 8 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of gambol

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List

One-Word Oxymorons: Bittersweet, Spendthrift, and More

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
hangman letters and game
Hangman Lightning Round Figure out which word fits in the blanks.
See All