saddling

English

Etymology

From saddle (verb) +‎ -ing. Compare Middle English saddyllynge, sadyllynge (“a saddlecloth or horsecloth”).

Noun

saddling (countable and uncountable, plural saddlings)

1. The act of placing a saddle on an animal.

   Antonym: unsaddling

   • 1901, Sidney Peel, “Up to the Transvaal”, in Trooper 8008 I Y, London: Edward Arnold […], →OCLC, page 134:

     And so through all the racket and noise of two or three saddlings and unsaddlings, he remained quite undisturbed, and came out of it much the best.

   • 1954, Troy Nesbit [pseudonym; Franklin Folsom], “Sacking Out”, in Sand Dune Pony (Wilderness Mysteries; 1), Racine, Wis.: Whitman Publishing Company, →OCLC, page 145:

     He let Sandy stand for a minute and then took the saddle off. Several more of these saddlings and unsaddlings followed. Then finally the saddle was cinched. Again Sandy repeated his pattern of calming down after the first unfamiliarity of a new experience had worn off. […] Before long Sandy accepted the saddle as if he’d been born with one on his back.

   • 1975 September 5, Red Smith, quoting Phil Bieber, “Lyin’ Fitz, the Beautiful Dreamer”, in The New York Times‎^[1], New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 13 February 2026, page 21, columns 2–3:

     An unusually large group was watching when Syriac was led to the paddock for saddling.

   • 1981, James Powell, chapter 8, in The Malpais Rider (A Double D Western), Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday & Company, →ISBN, page 62:

     The two Indians were finished with their own saddling, the camp gear was packed, and already the extra saddle horses and their one packhorse were haltered so they could be led back to the ranch.

   • 2001, Burt Phillips, The Ideal Horse: How to Train Him and Yourself, page 64:

     During the first few saddlings, do not use a saddle pad; it is unnecessary at this point and may fall and scare the horse.

Translations

the act of placing a saddle on an animal

• Hungarian: nyergelés (hu)
• Ukrainian: сідловка f (sidlovka)

Verb

saddling

1. present participle and gerund of saddle

Anagrams

• addlings