ewe

[ yoo; Dialect yoh ]

/ yu; Dialect yoʊ /

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noun

a female sheep, especially when fully mature.

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TAKE JOY IN ACING THIS QUIZ ON “PRIDE” SYNONYMS

Hold your head up high as you embark on this quiz that explores some of the synonyms and meanings of “pride.”

Question 1 of 7

What does "dignity" mean?

showing self-respect

treating others with kindness

acting selfishly

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Origin of ewe

First recorded before 1000; Middle English; Old English ēowu, ēwe; cognate with Old High German ou, ouwi, Dutch ooi, Latin ovis, Greek óïs, oîs, Sanskrit ávi

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH ewe

ewe , yew, you

Other definitions for ewe (2 of 2)

Ewe

[ ey-vey, ey-wey ]

/ ˈeɪ veɪ, ˈeɪ weɪ /

noun

a member of a people of Togo and Ghana, in western Africa.

the Kwa language spoken by the Ewe people.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use ewe in a sentence

He used only the choicest rams, a little under size, while the ewes were of full medium weight.
Domestic Animals|Richard L. Allen
In hot countries the rams have only two very short horns, and often are deficient of them as well as the ewes.
Buffon's Natural History. Volume VIII (of 10)|Georges Louis Leclerc de Buffon
If full-grown rams are turned into a lean pasture to remain with the ewes, not less than four should be put in for every hundred.
Domestic Animals|Richard L. Allen
The ewes are more likely to come quickly into heat, and prove prolific, if lightly fed with stimulating food at the time.
Domestic Animals|Richard L. Allen

But a larger number of lambs will be reared by a careful oversight of the ewes, and the use of proper precautions.
Domestic Animals|Richard L. Allen

British Dictionary definitions for ewe (1 of 2)

ewe

/ (juː) /

noun

a female sheep
(as modifier)a ewe lamb

Word Origin for ewe

Old English ēowu; related to Old Norse ǣr ewe, Old High German ou, Latin ovis sheep, Sanskrit avi

British Dictionary definitions for ewe (2 of 2)

Ewe

/ (ˈɛwɛ) /

noun

plural Ewe or Ewes a member of a Negroid people of W Africa living chiefly in the forests of E Ghana, Togo, and Benin

the language of this people, belonging to the Kwa branch of the Niger-Congo family

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012