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yearling

American  
[yeer-ling] / ˈyɪər lɪŋ /

noun

  1. an animal in its second year.

  2. a horse one year old, dating from January 1 of the year after the year of foaling.


adjective

  1. being a year old.

  2. of a year's duration or standing.

    a yearling bride.

yearling British  
/ ˈjɪəlɪŋ /

noun

  1. the young of any of various animals, including the antelope and buffalo, between one and two years of age

  2. a thoroughbred racehorse counted for racing purposes as being one year old until the second Jan 1 following its birth

    1. a bond that is intended to mature after one year

    2. ( as modifier )

      yearling bonds

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

adjective

  1. being a year old

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of yearling

1425–75; late Middle English; year, -ling 1; cognate with German Jährling

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Doak added that she and the other volunteers named the yearling "Cookie".

From BBC • Mar. 13, 2026

“What he did ... was pretty impressive to me,” Baffert said of the son of Not This Time who sold for $1.15 million as a yearling.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 6, 2026

When Flag is on the verge of becoming a yearling, Jody’s father says, “He’ll be like a person standin’ on the state line.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 23, 2026

Researchers also documented more recent cougar kills: a seven-year-old female wolf in 2019, the yearling female in early September of last year, and then a wolf pup later that month.

From National Geographic • Aug. 25, 2023

The next morning we heard the search party had found what the lion killed in my place: a yearling bushbuck.

From "The Poisonwood Bible" by Barbara Kingsolver