sheep

Pronunciation

• (General American) IPA^(key): /ʃip/
• (Received Pronunciation) enPR: shēp, IPA^(key): /ʃiːp/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Audio (UK)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -iːp

Etymology 1

From Middle English sheep, scheep, schep, schepe, from Old English sċēap, from Proto-Germanic *skēpą (compare West Frisian skiep, North Frisian schäip, Dutch schaap, German Schaf), beside *keppô (compare Old Norse kjappi (“he-goat”), dialectal German Kippe (“newborn calf”)), of unknown origin. Perhaps from the same Scythian word (compare Ossetian цӕу (cæw, “goat”), Persian چپش‎ (čapiš, “yearling goat”))^[1] which was borrowed into Albanian as cjap, sqap (“he-goat”) and into Slavic (compare Polish cap). After Kroonen, *skēpą is instead from the root of Proto-Germanic *skabaną (“to scratch”) via Kluge's law.^[2]

Etymology 2

References

Anagrams

• Ephes., HEPES, heeps

Alternative forms

• scheep, schep, schepe

Etymology

From Old English scēap, from Proto-Germanic *skēpą beside *keppôn, of unknown origin.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ʃeːp/, /ʃɛːp/

Noun

sheep (plural sheep)

1. sheep

Etymology

From Middle English sheep, scheep, schep, schepe, from Old English scēap, from Proto-Germanic *skēpą.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ʃip]

Noun

sheep (plural sheeps)

1. sheep (woolly ruminant of the genus Ovis)