paddock
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paddock¹
- /ˈpædək/ Ireland, UK, Scotland
- /ˈpædək/ Canada, US
- [ˈpæɾək] Canada, US
- /ˈpædək/ Australia
- [ˈpædɨ̞k] Australia
- [ˈpæɾɨ̞k] Australia
Rhymes with -ædək
Where it comes from
The noun is almost certainly a variant of dialectal British parrock (“enclosure; park; croft, small field, paddock”), from Middle English parrok, parrock (“enclosed pasture, paddock; coop; feeding stall; cabin, hut”) [and other forms], from Old English pearroc, pearruc (“fence used to enclose a space; area enclosed by such a fence, enclosure”), from Proto-West Germanic *parruk (“enclosure; pen for animals”), from Proto-Germanic *parrukaz (“fence; enclosure”); further etymology uncertain, perhaps related to Proto-Germanic *barō (“bar, beam; barrier”), possibly from Proto-Indo-European *bʰerH- (“to pierce; to strike”). Equivalent to park + -ock. Doublet of park.
The verb is derived from the noun.
Cognates
* Danish park (“pond”)
* Dutch perk (“flowerbed; garden; pen”)
* German Pferch (“sheepfold, sheep-pen”)
noun paddocks
- A small enclosure or field of grassland, especially one used to exercise or graze horses or other animals. Upon this information, they instantly passed through the hall once more, and ran across the lawn after their father, who was deliberately pursuing his way towards a small wood on one side of the paddock.
- An enclosure next to a racecourse where horses are paraded and mounted before a race and unsaddled after a race. We left the carriage, bought programmes, and walked across the infield and then across the smooth thick turf of the course to the paddock. […] The paddock was fairly well filled with people and they were walking the horses around in a ring under the trees behind the grand stand.
- An area at a racing circuit where the racing vehicles are parked and worked on before and between races.
- A field on which a game is played; a playing field.
- A field of grassland of any size, either enclosed by fences or delimited by geographical boundaries, especially a large area for keeping cattle or sheep.
- A place in a superficial deposit where ore or washdirt (“earth rich enough in metal to pay for washing”) is excavated; also, a place for storing ore, washdirt, etc.
verb paddocks · paddocking · paddocked
- To place or keep (cattle, horses, sheep, or other animals) within a paddock (noun sense 1 or 2.4); hence, to provide (such animals) with pasture. In the district of which I am speaking the sheep are all "paddocked," —that is to say, kept in by fences—so that shepherding is unnecessary.
- To enclose or fence in (land) to form a paddock. When a run is "paddocked," shepherds are not required;—but boundary-riders are employed, each of whom is supplied with two horses, and these men are responsible not only for the sheep but for the fences.
- To excavate washdirt (“earth rich enough in metal to pay for washing”) from (a superficial deposit).
- To store (ore, washdirt, etc.) in a paddock (noun sense 2.5).
paddock²
- /ˈpædək/ Ireland, UK, Scotland
- /ˈpædək/ Canada, US
- [ˈpæɾək] Canada, US
- /ˈpædək/ Australia
- [ˈpædɨ̞k] Australia
- [ˈpæɾɨ̞k] Australia
Rhymes with -ædək
Where it comes from
From Middle English paddok, paddoke (“frog; toad”) [and other forms], from pad, pade (“frog; toad”) + -ok (diminutive suffix). Pad, pade is derived from Old English *pada, *padda, padde, from Proto-West Germanic *paddā, from Proto-Germanic *paddǭ (“toad”); further etymology uncertain, possibly ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *bʰew- (“to swell”). The English word is analysable as pad (“(Britain, dialectal) frog; toad”) + -ock (suffix forming nouns, originally with diminutive senses).
Sense 2 (“sledge”) is probably from the supposed resemblance of the object to a frog or toad.
noun paddocks · padock · puddock
- A frog. Cold as a paddock.
- A toad. Where I was wont to ſeeke the honey Bee, / Working her formall rowmes in Wexen frame: / The grieſlie Todeſtoole growne there mought I ſe / And loathed Paddocks lording on the ſame.
-
A contemptible, or malicious or nasty, person.
[T]here was grandfaither's siller tester in the puddock’s heart of him.
Similar: assbag, assbreath, assbucket, asschunk, asscunt, assface, assfag, assfaggot, assfuck, assfucker, asshat, asshead
- A simple, usually triangular, sledge which is dragged along the ground to transport items.
Paddock³
Where it comes from
See paddock.
proper noun Paddocks
- An English surname. But 64-year-old Stephen C. Paddock flew low under the radar. He avoided interaction with many of the people around him, and his manner was direct and brusque.
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: pen, pasture, stall, corral, bullpen, yard, cage, fence, enclosure, fold, compound, toad, pound, pens, puddock, paddockful
Translations
Every language
noun small enclosure or field of grassland
| Español | dehesa, potrero |
|---|---|
| Português | piquete |
| Français | paddock, enclos |
| Deutsch | Koppel |
| Русский | вы́гон výgon |
noun enclosure next to a racecourse where horses are paraded and mounted before a race and unsaddled after a race
| Português | padoque, boxe |
|---|
noun area at a racing circuit where the racing vehicles are parked and worked on before and between races
| Español | paddock |
|---|---|
| Português | padoque, boxe |
| Deutsch | Fahrerlager |
noun field of grassland of any size, either enclosed by fences or delimited by geographical boundaries
| Português | pasto |
|---|
Talk about this word "paddock." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/paddock. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. paddock. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/paddock "paddock." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/paddock.Cite this
@misc{paddock_2026,
title = {paddock},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/paddock},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
