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put the cart before the horse

put the cart be·fore the horse
P p

Transcription

    • US Pronunciation
    • US IPA
    • UK Pronunciation
    • UK IPA
    • [poo t stressed th ee kahrt bih-fawr, -fohr stressed th ee hawrs]
    • /pʊt stressed ði kɑrt bɪˈfɔr, -ˈfoʊr stressed ði hɔrs/
    • /ˈpʊt ðə kɑːt bɪˈfɔː(r) ðə hɔːs/
    • US Pronunciation
    • US IPA
    • [poo t stressed th ee kahrt bih-fawr, -fohr stressed th ee hawrs]
    • /pʊt stressed ði kɑrt bɪˈfɔr, -ˈfoʊr stressed ði hɔrs/

Definitions of put the cart before the horse words

  • noun put the cart before the horse a heavy two-wheeled vehicle, commonly without springs, drawn by mules, oxen, or the like, used for the conveyance of heavy goods. 1
  • noun put the cart before the horse a light two-wheeled vehicle with springs, drawn by a horse or pony. 1
  • noun put the cart before the horse any small vehicle pushed or pulled by hand. 1
  • noun put the cart before the horse Obsolete. a chariot. 1
  • verb with object put the cart before the horse to haul or convey in or as if in a cart or truck: to cart garbage to the dump. 1
  • verb without object put the cart before the horse to drive a cart. 1
See all 11 definitions of put the cart before the horse

Information block about the term

Origin of put the cart before the horse

First appearance:

before 900
One of the 4% oldest English words
before 900; Middle English cart(e), Old English cræt (by metathesis); cognate with Old Norse kartr cart

Historical Comparancy

Parts of speech for Put the cart before the horse

noun
adjective
verb
adverb
pronoun
preposition
conjunction
determiner
exclamation
Full grammatical hierarchy of Put the cart before the horse

put the cart before the horse popularity

A common word. It’s meaning is known to most children of preschool age. About 95% of English native speakers know the meaning and use the word.
Most Europeans know this English word. The frequency of it’s usage is somewhere between "mom" and "screwdriver".

See also

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