verb (used without object), am·bled, am·bling.
- to go at a slow, easy pace; stroll; saunter: He ambled around the town.
- (of a horse) to go at a slow pace with the legs moving in lateral pairs and usually having a four-beat rhythm.
noun
- an ambling gait.
- a slow, easy walk or gentle pace.
- a stroll.
verb (intr)
- to walk at a leisurely relaxed pace
- (of a horse) to move slowly, lifting both legs on one side together
- to ride a horse at an amble or leisurely pace
noun
- a leisurely motion in walking
- a leisurely walk
- the ambling gait of a horse
early 14c., from Old French ambler “walk as a horse does,” from Latin ambulare “to walk, to go about, take a walk,” perhaps a compound of ambi- “around” (see ambi-) and -ulare, from PIE root *el- “to go” (cf. Greek ale “wandering,” alaomai “wander about;” Latvian aluot “go around or astray”). Until 1590s used only of horses or persons on horseback. Related: Ambled; ambling. As a noun, from late 14c.