steeplechase
steeplechase Lexical Profile
steeplechase Game Scores & Validity
• noun
A horse race run either cross-country or on an enclosed course over obstacles such as fences, hedges, and water jumps.
"The jockey carefully guided his mount over the final hedge to win the annual steeplechase."
A long-distance track-and-field footrace, typically covering 3,000 meters, in which runners must clear solid hurdles and a water jump.
"She broke the collegiate record in the 3,000-meter steeplechase at the regional championship."
• verb
To ride or compete in a steeplechase.
"He spent his weekends training young thoroughbreds to steeplechase across the rolling countryside."
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
Coined in the late 18th century in Ireland, originally referring to a cross-country horse race in which riders used a distant church steeple as the visible landmark and finish line, jumping over whatever hedges, walls, and ditches lay in their path.