Pony

1659 from Scots powny, apparently from Middle French poulenet ("little foal"), ultimately from Late Latin pullanus ("young of an animal") (cognate to English foal).

Full definition of pony

Noun

1. Any of several small breeds of horse under 14.2 hands.
2. (regional) A small serving of an alcoholic beverage.
• 1969, Vladimir Nabokov, Ada or Ardor, Penguin 2011, p. 193:Demon popped into his mouth a last morsel of black bread with elastic samlet, gulped down a last pony of vodka and took his place at the table with Marina facing him across its oblong length.
• 2010, Dick Lynas, Pies Were for Thursdays: Tales from an Ordinary Glasgow East End Childhood, %22ponies%22+beer+-intitle:%22%22+-inauthor:%22%22&hl=en&sa=X&ei=zn7kT4GAHMzHmQWgmeSCCw&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=%22pony%22|%22ponies%22%20beer%20-intitle%3A%22%22%20-inauthor%3A%22%22&f=false page 283,I did not even know what a ‘pony’, a small chaser of beer, was. But of course I could not admit that. So putting on an air of nonchalance, and a deep voice, I strolled into a pub with one of the other equally naive guys and we ordered two ponies of beer.‘McEwans?’ asked the barman.‘Naw - ponies’ said I.
3. (Australia, New South Wales, Victoria) A serving of 140 millilitres of beer.
4. (UK, slang) Twenty-five pounds sterling.
5. (US, slang) A translation used as a study aid; loosely, a crib, a cheat-sheet.
6. (Cockney rhyming slang) (from "pony and trap") Crap; rubbish, nonsense.

Synonyms

• horseling

Derived terms

Verb

1. (transitive) To lead (a horse) from another horse.

Shortened from pony and trap, rhyming with crap

Adjective

1. (Cockney rhyming slang) Of little worth.----