black sheep

American  

noun

1. a sheep with black fleece.

2. a person who causes shame or embarrassment because of deviation from an accepted standard of behavior.

---

black sheep British  

noun

1. a person who is regarded as a disgrace or failure by his family or peer group

---

black sheep Cultural  

1. A person who is considered a disgrace to a particular group, usually a family: “Uncle Jack, who was imprisoned for forgery, is the black sheep of the family.”

---

black sheep Idioms  

1. The least reputable member of a group; a disgrace. For example, Uncle Fritz was the black sheep of the family; we always thought he emigrated to Argentina to avoid jail. This metaphor is based on the idea that black sheep were less valuable than white ones because it was more difficult to dye their wool different colors. Also, in the 16th century, their color was considered the devil's mark. By the 18th century the term was widely used as it is today, for the odd member of a group.

---

Etymology

Origin of black sheep

First recorded in 1785–95

---

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

black sheep

Hartland said he surrounded himself with music growing up and described himself as a bit of a "black sheep".

From BBC ● Nov. 1, 2026

You may feel like the black sheep of your family, but you can be the North Star of your own life, and your son’s life, and your friends’ lives.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 7, 2026

While Magyar will only take office next month, his team has already held two rounds of talks with high-ranking EU officials as they look to bring black sheep Budapest back into the fold.

From Barron's ● Apr. 29, 2026

From its humble beginnings at downtown dive bar La Cita, Gothicumbia has drawn black sheep from all over the city — and has since traveled from Riverside to San Francisco.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 28, 2025

“Yeah, but I need to find out stuff, like, I don’t know...stuff like if there are actually black sheep in real life.”

From "As Brave As You" by Jason Reynolds

Random Word

Spin the wheel and learn a new word!

---

Related Words

• pariah

---