corral

1 of 2

noun

cor·​ral kə-ˈral How to pronounce corral (audio)
-ˈrel
Synonyms of corral
1
: a pen or enclosure for confining or capturing livestock
herded the cattle into the corral
2
: an enclosure made with wagons for defense of an encampment

corral

2 of 2

verb

corralled; corralling

transitive verb

1
: to enclose in a corral (see corral entry 1 sense 1)
corralled the horses
2
: to arrange (wagons) so as to form a corral (see corral entry 1 sense 2)
3
: collect, gather
corralling votes for the upcoming election

Synonyms of corral

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Noun

Verb

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Examples of corral in a Sentence

Noun the horses live in our corral, along with a cow Verb corralled everyone in the conference room for a speech by the CEO corralled a scattering of stray pens and quickly stuffed them in the drawer to tidy the desk
Recent Examples on the Web
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Noun
According to the listing, the estate was custom built for the princess, with horse corrals, large stretches of usable land, and enough seclusion to feel removed from the hurly-burly of Los Angeles. — Abby Montanez, Robb Report, 4 Aug. 2026 Long before OpenAI broke out of its test corral and hacked into Hugging Face, before the internet and Sam Altman were even born, Cameron wrote a screenplay about an autonomous artificial intelligence system that triggers a nuclear apocalypse. — ABC News, 26 July 2026
Verb
In September, the Custer State Park Buffalo Roundup and Arts Festival brings in more than 20,000 spectators who line a hillside to watch riders corral the majestic beasts. — Jess Hoffert, Midwest Living, 5 Aug. 2026 Instead of tossing your dirty laundry onto the floor (or at the bottom of your closet), place one of these hampers in the same spot to corral them. — Sian Babish, PEOPLE, 2 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for corral

Word History

Etymology

Noun and Verb

Spanish, from Vulgar Latin *currale enclosure for vehicles, from Latin currus cart, from currere to run — more at car

First Known Use

Noun

1582, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1847, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of corral was in 1582

Rhymes for corral

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Browse Nearby Words

corrade
corral
corrasion
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Corral.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/corral. Accessed 9 Aug. 2026.

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Kids Definition

corral

1 of 2 noun
cor·​ral kə-ˈral How to pronounce corral (audio)
1
: a pen for keeping or capturing livestock
2
: an enclosure made with wagons for defense of a camp

corral

2 of 2 verb
corralled; corralling
1
: to keep in or as if in a corral
2
: surround entry 1, capture
3
: to arrange wagons so as to form a corral

More from Merriam-Webster on corral

Nglish: Translation of corral for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about corral

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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