The word "yearling" refers to a youth between 12 and 24 months old.
To determine the meaning of the word "yearling" in this context, we can analyze the sentence. In the sentence, it is mentioned that the horse broke her leg when she was only a yearling. This indicates that "yearling" refers to an age rather than the horse's physical condition. Based on the given options, the best answer would be "youth between 12 and 24 months old." This choice aligns with the context of the sentence since a yearling is typically a horse that is between 12 and 24 months old.