Melcombe Horsey is a civil parish in the county of Dorset in South West England.

[5] It is surrounded by chalk hills of the Dorset Downs, though the village itself is sited in a basin of greensand and gault.

[6][7][8] The names of places in this area are frequently muddled, with published sources providing different information.

Writing in 1980, writer Roland Gant stated "whichever form I use, I always find that the person to whom I am speaking uses the other".

[6][7][10] Between the two manors is another settlement, situated along the road running north into the neighbouring parish of Hilton.