shepherd

¹ American  

[shep-erd] / ˈʃɛp ərd /

noun

1. a person who herds, tends, and guards sheep.

2. a person who protects, guides, or watches over a person or group of people.

   Synonyms:

   keeper, defender, guardian, protector

3. a member of the clergy.

4. the Shepherd, Jesus Christ.

5. sheepdog.

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verb (used with object)

1. to tend or guard as a shepherd.

   to shepherd the flock.

2. to watch over carefully.

Shepherd ² American  

[shep-erd] / ˈʃɛp ərd /

noun

1. a male given name.

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shepherd ¹ British  

/ ˈʃɛpəd /

noun

1. Female equivalent: shepherdess.  a person employed to tend sheep

2. a person, such as a clergyman, who watches over or guides a group of people

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verb

1. to guide or watch over in the manner of a shepherd

2. Australian rules football to prevent opponents from tackling (a member of one's own team) by blocking their path

Shepherd ² British  

noun

1. astronomy a small moon of (e.g.) Saturn orbiting close to the rings and partly responsible for ring stability

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Other Word Forms

• shepherdless adjective
• shepherdlike adjective
• undershepherd noun
• unshepherded adjective
• unshepherding adjective

Etymology

Origin of shepherd

before 1050; Middle English shepherde, Old English scēphyrde. See sheep, herd ²

Example Sentences

“All the people across the nation of Malawi are talking about these four German shepherd dogs,” Sekeya said in one post as generic images of the dogs scrolled behind him.

From The Wall Street Journal

Or making coffee at home every day except Friday, when that double-shot dirty chai earns its keep by shepherding you through end-of-week meetings.

From Salon

A lone shepherd respectfully doffs his hat as he finds himself in the presence of an angel trailing a long message: “I bring you tidings of great joy . . . ”

From The Wall Street Journal

Before diving into AI, Sacks shepherded an ambitious cryptocurrency bill providing legal clarity for digital assets.

From Barron's

The 56-year old said: "I buy a lot of the fresh fruit and vegetables to make things like apple strudels, chips or shepherd's pie, so it has cut the cost of my midweek shop."

From BBC

Related Words

• herder
• herdsman