sheep

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   A farm animal with a thick woolly coat, kept for its wool and meat.

   A flock of sheep grazed quietly on the hillside.

2. 2
   noun

   A person who follows others without thinking for themselves.

   The crowd followed the leader like sheep.

Appears in

Simplified etymology

Sheep has existed in English since Anglo-Saxon times. Its figurative use for a person who is easily influenced or led emerged in the 16th century.

Inherited from Middle English schep, schepe, from Anglian Old English sċēp (West Saxon sċēap), from Proto-West Germanic *skāp, from Proto-Germanic *skēpą, of unknown origin. Perhaps from the same Scythian word (compare Ossetian цӕу (cæw, “goat”), Persian چپش (čapiš, “yearling goat”)) which was borrowed into Albanian as cjap, sqap (“buck”) and into Slavic (compare Polish cap). After Kroonen, *skēpą is instead from the root of Proto-Germanic *skabaną (“to scratch”) via Kluge's law. Cognates Cognate with Scots sheep (“sheep”), Yola sheep, zheep (“sheep”), North Frisian schep, schäip, Sjip (“sheep…

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