shanks' mare
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shanks' mare
Where it comes from
Believed to be Scottish in origin and derives from shanks' nag (shanks-naig 1774), referring to the use of shank to refer to the part of the human leg between the knee and ankle. One theory cites "shank's mare" derived from a horse-drawn lawn mower, manufactured by Shanks & Company Ltd. (founded 1853) which required that the human operator walk behind the device to guide the horse; however, references to the phrase in Scottish literature pre-date the existence of the Shanks lawn mower.
noun shanks' mares · shanks's mare · shank's mare · shanks mare
- One's own feet used for walking. A public exhibition of the velocipede [a predecessor of the bicycle] ... will never come into general use in competition with Shank's mare.
Translations
Every language
noun walking
| 中文 | 十一路 |
|---|---|
| Deutsch | Schusters Rappen |
| Русский | на свои́х двои́х na svoíx dvoíx, на Пешка́русе na Peškáruse |
Talk about this word "shanks' mare." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/shanks'%20mare. Accessed 7 Nov. 2026. shanks' mare. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 7, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/shanks'%20mare "shanks' mare." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 7, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/shanks'%20mare.Cite this
@misc{shanks_mare_2026,
title = {shanks' mare},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/shanks'%20mare},
urldate = {2026-11-07}
}
