SHEEP

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does sheep mean? 

• SHEEP (noun)
  The noun SHEEP has 3 senses:

1. woolly usually horned ruminant mammal related to the goat

2. a timid defenseless simpleton who is readily preyed upon

3. a docile and vulnerable person who would rather follow than make an independent decision

  Familiarity information: SHEEP used as a noun is uncommon.

 Dictionary entry details 

• SHEEP (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Woolly usually horned ruminant mammal related to the goat

Classified under:

Nouns denoting animals

Hypernyms ("sheep" is a kind of...):

bovid (hollow-horned ruminants)

Meronyms (parts of "sheep"):

trotter (foot of a pig or sheep especially one used as food)

withers (the highest part of the back at the base of the neck of various animals especially draft animals)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "sheep"):

ewe (female sheep)

ram; tup (uncastrated adult male sheep)

wether (male sheep especially a castrated one)

black sheep (sheep with a black coat)

domestic sheep; Ovis aries (any of various breeds raised for wool or edible meat or skin)

Holonyms ("sheep" is a member of...):

genus Ovis; Ovis (sheep)

flock; fold (a group of sheep or goats)

herd (a group of cattle or sheep or other domestic mammals all of the same kind that are herded by humans)

Sense 2

Meaning:

A timid defenseless simpleton who is readily preyed upon

Classified under:

Nouns denoting people

Hypernyms ("sheep" is a kind of...):

simple; simpleton (a person lacking intelligence or common sense)

Sense 3

Meaning:

A docile and vulnerable person who would rather follow than make an independent decision

Classified under:

Nouns denoting people

Context example:

his students followed him like sheep

Hypernyms ("sheep" is a kind of...):

follower (a person who accepts the leadership of another)

 Context examples 

There is no great harm in that, remarked the tooth-drawer, for the sheep give many folk their living.

(The White Company, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

The determination of the amount of human anti-sheep IgG antibody present in a sample.

(Human Anti-Sheep IgG Antibody Measurement, NCI Thesaurus)

A measurement of the human anti-sheep IgG antibodies in a biological specimen.

(Human Anti-Sheep IgG Antibody Measurement, NCI Thesaurus/CDISC)

Then I should not have been as now, a mere fleeing sheep before this butcher.

(Treasure Island, by Robert Louis Stevenson)

Proud of his commission, and understanding it, Mr. Dick accompanied her as a shepherd's dog might accompany a sheep.

(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)

He is as happy as possible by himself; with his farm, and his sheep, and his library, and all the parish to manage; and he is extremely fond of his brother's children.

(Emma, by Jane Austen)

The determination of the amount of human anti-sheep IgM antibody present in a sample.

(Human Anti-Sheep IgM Antibody Measurement, NCI Thesaurus)

A measurement of the human anti-sheep IgM antibodies in a biological specimen.

(Human Anti-Sheep IgM Antibody Measurement, NCI Thesaurus/CDISC)

Also called sheep sorrel and sorrel.

(Dock, NCI Dictionary)

"So do I, it was so smooth and pretty. But it will soon grow out again," said Beth, coming to kiss and comfort the shorn sheep.

(Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott)