Stalking Horse

Pronunciation: /ˈstɔːkɪŋ hɔːrs/

Definitions of stalking horse

noun a horse or a figure of a horse behind which a hunter conceals himself

Example Sentences

A1 A stalking horse is a person or thing that is used to conceal someone's real intentions.

A2 The company used a stalking horse to make it seem like they were interested in buying the property.

B1 The politician used a stalking horse to test the public's reaction to his new policy proposal.

B2 The new product launch was just a stalking horse for the company to introduce their upgraded version later.

C1 The merger between the two companies was seen as a stalking horse for a larger acquisition strategy.

C2 The investigative journalist used a stalking horse to uncover corruption within the government.

Examples of stalking horse in a Sentence

formal The company used a stalking horse bid to test the market before officially putting the business up for sale.

informal I heard they're using a stalking horse strategy to see how much interest there is in the property.

slang They're putting out a stalking horse offer to see if anyone bites.

figurative The new policy was seen as a stalking horse for more drastic changes to come.

Grammatical Forms of stalking horse

• past tense: stalked
• plural: stalking horses
• comparative: more stalking horse
• superlative: most stalking horse
• present tense: stalks
• future tense: will stalk
• perfect tense: has stalked
• continuous tense: is stalking
• singular: stalking horse
• positive degree: stalking horse
• infinitive: to stalk horse
• gerund: stalking
• participle: stalking

Origin and Evolution of stalking horse

First Known Use: 1530 year

Language of Origin: English

Story behind the word: The term 'stalking horse' originated from the practice of using a horse to conceal a hunter from their prey while hunting. The horse would 'stalk' or approach the prey without alarming them.

Evolution of the word: Over time, the term 'stalking horse' evolved to refer to a political strategy or tactic used to conceal a candidate's true intentions or to test the waters before making a formal announcement. It is now commonly used in a figurative sense to describe a person or thing used to conceal a true purpose or agenda.