# sheep

/ˈʃip/ (US) · /ʃˈiːp/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/sheep
Updated: 2026-06-19

## Senses

### 2. a follower

noun · CEFR B2 · Informal

a person who always follows what others do or say without thinking for themselves.

For teachers: a person who is easily led, influenced, or controlled by others, lacking individual initiative or critical thought.

- Don't be a sheep and just buy that phone because everyone else has one.
- The critic dismissed the crowd as mere sheep, claiming they only praised the film because it was fashionable to do so.

### 3. religious members

noun · CEFR C1 · Literary

the people who belong to a church or religious group.

For teachers: members of a religious congregation, often used in relation to a 'pastor' or 'shepherd'.

- The priest spoke kindly to his sheep during the Sunday service.
- The sermon was designed to offer comfort to the sheep of the parish during a time of great economic uncertainty.

## Examples

- The farmer shears the sheep every spring.
- A large flock of sheep blocked the narrow road, forcing the driver to wait until the shepherd moved them.
- While individual sheep are often perceived as docile and unintelligent, their flocking behaviour is a sophisticated survival mechanism designed to protect the group from predators in open landscapes.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.