Meaning & use
bucking bronco
Last updated
Meanings
nouncountableAmerican
A horse that jumps and kicks wildly to throw off its rider, especially in a rodeo.
Grammar: Countable: a bucking bronco, two bucking broncos.
Patterns
- ride a bucking bronco
- a bucking bronco throws someone
The cowboy stayed on the bucking bronco for eight seconds.
A bucking bronco can kick with both back legs at once.
She drew a tough bucking bronco in the rodeo finals.
nouncountablefigurative
Something wild, unpredictable, or very hard to control.
Grammar: Used figuratively, often in the phrase 'like a bucking bronco'.
Patterns
- like a bucking bronco
- a bucking bronco of something
The old car shook like a bucking bronco on the dirt road.
The economy has been a bucking bronco this year.
Word forms
| plural | bucking broncos |
|---|
Common combinations
- ride a bucking bronco
- He learned to ride a bucking bronco on his uncle's ranch.
- stay on a bucking bronco
- Few riders can stay on a bucking bronco for the full eight seconds.
- throw a rider
- The bucking bronco threw its rider into the dust.
- like a bucking bronco
- The washing machine jumped around like a bucking bronco.
Synonyms and how they differ
- bronco
- A shorter word for an untrained horse; 'bucking bronco' emphasizes the bucking action.
- bucking horse
- A general term used in rodeo; 'bucking bronco' is more colorful and informal.
Word family
Commonly confused: bucking bronco or bucking bronco vs. bronco buster?
bucking bronco vs bucking bronco vs. bronco buster
A 'bronco buster' is a person who tames horses, not the horse itself.
Practice
What is a bucking bronco?
Choose one answer.
A bucking bronco is the horse, not the rider or a piece of clothing. It is known for bucking violently.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “bucking bronco”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.