A Little Horse Crossword Clue

By: Five Letter Words | Last edited: May 06, 2025

Are you working on the May 06, 2025 New York Times Mini crossword and stuck on the "A little horse" clue? We've identified the exact 4-letter answer you need. To enhance your puzzle-solving experience, we've designed interactive features to help you. Our progressive letter reveal tool allows you to uncover the solution gradually, or you can explore our thoughtfully developed hints—including helpful anagrams, related clues sharing the same answer, or comprehensive definitions to guide your thinking. We've also streamlined navigation between clues from the same puzzle, enabling you to tackle multiple clues effortlessly. Ready to discover the name for a young equine? Let's explore the solution together!

Crossword Answer:

NEW YORK TIMES MINI, MAY / 06 / 2025
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About This Clue

The May 6, 2025 New York Times Mini Crossword featured the clue "A little horse" with the answer FOAL. This clue cleverly plays on the word "little," which can refer both to the small size of a young horse and to the fact that it's a juvenile animal. A foal is specifically a horse that is less than one year old, regardless of gender. After one year, foals are generally referred to as yearlings. The term is used across various horse breeds, from ponies to thoroughbreds. In crossword puzzles, "FOAL" is a commonly used answer due to its convenient four-letter length and the variety of clues that can hint at it, making it a versatile option for puzzle constructors.

Equine Terminology

When discussing horses, terminology becomes quite specific depending on age, gender, and breeding status. A foal refers to a horse of either gender that is less than one year old. After turning one, a foal becomes a yearling. Gender-specific terms include "colt" for a young male horse under four years old and "filly" for a young female horse under four years old. Adult horses are called "stallions" (uncastrated males), "geldings" (castrated males), or "mares" (females over four years old). The term "pony" refers not to a young horse but to a small horse breed that remains under 14.2 hands (58 inches or 147 cm) at maturity.

Foals are typically born after an 11-month gestation period. They can stand within an hour of birth and can run shortly thereafter—an evolutionary adaptation that allowed wild horses to flee from predators even with newborns. The first milk a foal receives, called colostrum, is crucial as it contains antibodies that help build the foal's immune system. Foals generally nurse for 4-6 months before being weaned, though they begin sampling grass and hay much earlier. The development of a foal is remarkably rapid compared to human babies, reflecting their evolutionary need to quickly integrate into the herd for survival in the wild.

NYT Mini Crossword Tips

When encountering clues like "A little horse" in the NYT Mini Crossword, consider multiple interpretations of the words. In this case, "little" could refer to size or age, leading to the answer FOAL rather than PONY (which would be a small adult horse). The Mini Crossword often employs these types of wordplay, where adjectives can have dual meanings. Another strategy is to look at the number of letters required by the crossing clues—in this case, a four-letter answer narrows down the possibilities considerably. Common animal-related terms like FOAL appear frequently in crosswords because they contain vowel-consonant combinations that make them useful for constructors building interconnected grids. Being familiar with basic animal terminology, especially for common creatures like horses, cats, dogs, and birds, can give you an advantage when solving. Remember that the NYT Mini Crossword typically uses accessible vocabulary and common knowledge rather than obscure terms, making FOAL a fitting answer for this puzzle.

Related Crossword Answers

COLT

Clue: "Young male horse"

FILLY

Clue: "Young female horse"

MARE

Clue: "Adult female horse"

PONY

Clue: "Small horse breed"

More Clues & Answers For The New York Times Mini (May 6, 2025)

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