ewe
noun
a female sheep, especially when fully mature.
ewe
1 American
[yoo, yoh]
/ yu, yoʊ /
noun
Ewe
2
American
[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.
ewe
1
British
/ juː /
noun
Ewe
2
British
/ ˈɛwɛ /
noun
-
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
Etymology
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
Explanation
At last, a word that means only one thing. A ewe is a female sheep. That is what a ewe is. Most people have precious few opportunities to use the word ewe. For most of us, it's most valuable as a three-letter word for crossword puzzles. For example: 1-down: a three-letter word meaning female sheep. Answer? Ewe! Also, if you're an avid Scrabble player, ewe is a good word to keep up your sleeve. That "W" can rake in some serious points if you put it on a triple-word space. Finally, punster's will enjoy using ewe in a sentence like “you and I will go see the ewe and him” — which has the two of us going to see some guy and his female sheep.
Vocabulary lists containing ewe
Back-Words: Palindromes
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Essential Three-Letter Words, Part 4
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Scrabble: Palindrome Words
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
While twins and triplets are common during lambing season, seven lambs being born to one ewe is said to be "incredibly rare".
From BBC • May 8, 2026
In 2021, a ewe in Scotland gave birth to eight live lambs, believed to be a UK record.
From BBC • May 8, 2026
At the opposite extreme is Scotland's Soay sheep, with just 0.6% full siblings because each ewe mates with multiple rams.
From Science Daily • Jan. 22, 2026
The embryos were later implanted in a ewe, resulting in a pure Marco Polo argali sheep that Schubert named “Montana Mountain King,” the documents show.
From Seattle Times • Mar. 13, 2024
He would watch and know precisely when a ewe was starting labor—had a wonderful knowledge of sheep—but could barely move.
From This Side of Wild by Gary Paulsen
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
