foal

English

A mare and foal.

Etymology

From Middle English fole, from Old English fola, from Proto-West Germanic *folō, from Proto-Germanic *fulô, from pre-Germanic *pl̥Hon-, from Proto-Indo-European *pōlH- (“animal young”) (cognate with Saterland Frisian Foole, West Frisian fôle, foalle, Dutch veulen, German Low German Fohl, German Fohlen, Fohle, Swedish fåle; compare also Ancient Greek πῶλος (pôlos), Latin pullus, Albanian pelë (“mare”), Old Armenian ուլ (ul, “kid, fawn”). Related to filly.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /fəʊl/, [fɔʊɫ]
• (General Australian, New Zealand) IPA^(key): /fɐʉl/, [fɔʊɫ]
• (General American) IPA^(key): /foʊl/, [foɫ]

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -əʊl

Noun

foal (plural foals)

1. A young horse or other equine, especially just after birth or less than a year old.
2. (mining, historical) A young boy who assisted the headsman by pushing or pulling the tub.

Derived terms

• in-foal

 

Translations

young horse

• Albanian: mëz (sq) m
• Arabic: مُهْر m (muhr), فِلْو m (filw)

  Egyptian Arabic: مهر m (muhr)

• Armenian: մտրուկ (hy) (mtruk), քուռակ (hy) (kʻuṙak)
• Aromanian: mãndzu
• Asturian: potru (ast) m
• Avar: тайи (taji)
• Azerbaijani: qulun
• Bashkir: ҡолон (qolon); (diminutive) ҡолонсаҡ (qolonsaq), ҡолоҡай (qoloqay)
• Belarusian: жарабя́ n (žarabjá), жарабё n (žarabjó)
• Breton: ebeul (br) m
• Bulgarian: конче́ (bg) n (končé), жребче́ (bg) n (žrebčé)
• Burmese: မြင်းကလေး (my) (mrang:ka.le:)
• Buryat: унаган (unagan)
• Catalan: pollí (ca), poltre (ca) m, f
• Chechen: бекъа (beqʼa)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 駒子／驹子 (zh) (jūzi), 駒／驹 (zh) (jū), 䮔 (zh) (zuī)

• Chuvash: тиха (tih̬a)
• Crimean Tatar: bala, at bala
• Czech: hříbě (cs) n
• Danish: føl (da) n
• Dutch: veulen (nl) n, kachtel (nl) n
• Erzya: парнэ (parne), вашо (vašo)
• Esperanto: ĉevalido
• Estonian: varss (et)
• Faroese: fyl n, foli m
• Finnish: varsa (fi)
• French: poulain (fr) m, pouliche (fr) f
• Galician: poldro (gl) m
• Georgian: კვიცი (ḳvici)
• German: Fohlen (de) n, Füllen (de) n, Jungpferd n

  Alemannic German: Füli n

• Greek: πουλάρι (el) n (poulári)

  Ancient: πῶλος m or f (pôlos)

• Hebrew: סייח (he) m (s’yách)
• Hungarian: csikó (hu)
• Icelandic: folald (is) n
• Indonesian: anak kuda
• Ingrian: varsa
• Ingush: бакъ (baqʼ)
• Irish: searrach m
• Italian: puledro (it) n (poltrone (it) (obsolete))
• Japanese: 子馬 (ja) (こうま, kouma)
• Javanese: belo (jv)
• Kalmyk: унһн (unğn)
• Kazakh: құлын (qūlyn), құлыншақ (qūlynşaq)
• Korean: 망아지 (ko) (mang'aji)
• Kurdish:

  Central Kurdish: جوانوو (cwanû)

  Northern Kurdish: canî (ku)

• Kyrgyz: кулун (ky) (kulun), тай (ky) (tay)
• Latin: equulus m
• Latvian: kumeļš
• Lithuanian: kumeliukas
• Macedonian: ждребе n (ždrebe)
• Malay: anak kuda
• Maltese: felu m
• Maori: punua hōiho, hōiho kuao
• Mongolian: унага (mn) (unaga)
• Norman: poulain m
• Norwegian: føll (no) n, fole (no) m
• Occitan: polin (oc) m
• Old Church Slavonic: жрѣбьць m (žrěbĭcĭ), жрѣбѧ n (žrěbę)
• Old English: fola m
• Persian: کره (fa) (korre)
• Plautdietsch: Falm n
• Polish: źrebak (pl) m, źrebię (pl) n
• Portuguese: potro (pt) m
• Romani: khuro m
• Romanian: mânz (ro) m, mânză (ro) f
• Russian: жеребёнок (ru) m (žerebjónok)
• Scottish Gaelic: searrach m
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: ждребе n, ждријебе n

  Roman: ždrebe (sh) n, ždrijebe (sh) n

• Shor: қулун
• Sicilian: putru (scn) m
• Slovak: žriebä (sk) n
• Slovene: žrebe (sl) n, žrebiček m (diminutive)
• Sorbian:

  Lower Sorbian: žrěbje n

  Upper Sorbian: žrěbjo n

• Spanish: potranco m, potro (es) m, potra f, potrillo (es) m
• Swahili: mwanafarasi
• Swedish: föl (sv) n
• Tagalog: bisiro
• Tatar: колын (tt) (qolın)
• Turkish: tay (tr)
• Turkmen: taý
• Ukrainian: лоша́ n (lošá), жеребе́ць (uk) m (žerebécʹ)
• Uzbek: toy (uz)
• Vietnamese: ngựa con, lừa con
• Volapük: jevodül (vo)
• Welsh: ebol (cy) m
• West Frisian: fôle
• Yakut: кулун (kulun)

Verb

foal (third-person singular simple present foals, present participle foaling, simple past and past participle foaled)

1. (transitive, intransitive) To give birth to (a foal); to bear offspring.
   • 1859, Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities, London: Chapman and Hall, […], →OCLC:

     All the time, our overfraught hearts are beating at a rate that would far outstrip the fastest gallop of the fastest horses ever foaled.

   • [1877], Anna Sewell, “Earlshall”, in Black Beauty: […], London: Jarrold and Sons, […], →OCLC, part II, page 102:

     "Well," said John, "I don't believe there is a better pair of horses in the country, and right grieved I am to part with them, but they are not alike; the black one is the most perfect temper I ever knew; I suppose he has never known a hard word or a blow since he was foaled, and all his pleasure seems to be to do what you wish; […]

Translations

give birth (equestrian)

• Bulgarian: ожребвам се (ožrebvam se)
• Catalan: pollinar (ca)
• Czech: ohřebit se pf, vrhnout hříbě
• Danish: fole (da)
• Faroese: fola
• Finnish: varsoa (fi)
• French: pouliner (fr)
• German: fohlen (de)
• Icelandic: kasta (is)
• Macedonian: се ождребува (se oždrebuva)
• Polish: oźrebić się
• Portuguese: parir (pt)
• Romanian: făta (ro)
• Russian: жереби́ться (ru) impf (žerebítʹsja), ожереби́ться (ru) pf (ožerebítʹsja)
• Sicilian: figghiari (scn), sgravari
• Slovene: ožrebiti se (sl) pf
• Swedish: föla (sv)

See also

• colt
• filly
• horseling
• mare
• stallion

Anagrams

• AFOL, Olaf, loaf