A smooth, three-beat gait of a horse faster than a trot but slower than a gallop, or to move at this pace.
Short for 'Canterbury pace,' named after the easy gait pilgrims rode to Canterbury (famous from Chaucer's Canterbury Tales). The term emerged in the 16th century as a specific horse movement.
A canter is literally named after the speed medieval pilgrims needed to travel to a shrine—it's the pace of religious devotion, making horse gaits a record of human cultural practices from centuries ago. Language freezes historical routines into vocabulary.
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