Meaning
The principle that different people or things are suited to different jobs, conditions or roles, and that choices should be made accordingly - one runner shines on heavy ground, another on firm; one colleague excels at sales, another at paperwork. Usually a shrugging comment on team selection or task allocation: pick whoever fits this situation rather than assuming one best choice for every occasion. Informal; usually neutral or approving, about matching talent to task rather than ranking people overall. Often used as a standalone reply. Rare in North American English except among racing fans. Regional use: British and Commonwealth English.
Origin
A British phrase from horse racing: the metaphor is that each racehorse is suited to a particular racecourse - its going, distance and contours - and will run better there than anywhere else. The OED's entry for the noun horse glosses the phrase exactly so: 'a theory that each racehorse is suited to a particular race-course, and will do better on that course than on any other; also figurative' - verified directly on the factsheet, which also carries A. E. T. Watson's The Turf (1898): 'A familiar phrase on the turf is horses for courses', Watson calling it familiar showing it was already stock racing slang in the 1890s, not a fresh coinage. The idiom remains chiefly British and Commonwealth; American English tends to rephrase it.
Research Sources
References used to check this entry’s meaning, history, or documented forms.
Variants
- a horse for a course
- different horses for different courses
Usage Examples
- You handle the clients and I will handle the spreadsheets - horses for courses.
- The selector defended picking two spinners: it is simply horses for courses on a dry pitch.
- Rather than naming a permanent deputy, they rotate leads by project - horses for courses.