DERBY
What does "DERBY" mean?
A major sporting contest, especially a horse race or a match between local rival teams.
Meanings
- An important annual horse race, or a race of a particular kind. Thousands packed the grandstand to watch the Kentucky Derby.
- A sporting match between two teams from the same town or region. The local derby always sells out, win or lose.
- A man's stiff felt hat with a rounded crown, also called a bowler. He tipped his derby to the ladies as he passed.
Did you know?
- Every 'derby' game on Earth - from football rivalries to roller derby - traces its name to one man: the 12th Earl of Derby, who founded the Epsom horse race in 1780.
Word origin
From the Earl of Derby, who founded the Epsom horse race in 1780; the English place-name Derby itself comes from Old Norse for 'deer settlement'.
Remember it
A DERBY can be a race, a rivalry, or a hat - all named, directly or by analogy, after the Earl of Derby's 1780 race.
A little poem
One earl, one race, and now the whole world's claim:
a town's two halves still fight beneath his name.
couplet
Wordplay
- Why did the bowler hat enter the horse race? It heard the winner gets a derby.
What it teaches
The fiercest rivalries are local: we save our loudest noise for the team across the street.
Quick facts
What does DERBY mean?
A major sporting contest, especially a horse race or a match between local rival teams.
Is DERBY a valid word?
Yes — DERBY is one of the answer words in Wordul, the daily word game.
How many letters is DERBY?
DERBY has 5 letters and 2 syllables.
Where does DERBY come from?
From the Earl of Derby, who founded the Epsom horse race in 1780; the English place-name Derby itself comes from Old Norse for 'deer settlement'.
What can DERBY teach us?
The fiercest rivalries are local: we save our loudest noise for the team across the street.
How players do
Be the first to solve it.