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herd

1
[ hurd ]
/ hɜrd /
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See synonyms for: herd / herded / herding on Thesaurus.com

noun
a number of animals kept, feeding, or traveling together; drove; flock: a herd of cattle;a herd of sheep;a herd of zebras.
Sometimes Disparaging. a large group of people: The star was mobbed by a herd of autograph seekers.
any large quantity: a herd of bicycles.
the herd, the common people; the masses; the rabble: He had no opinions of his own, but simply followed the herd.
verb (used without object)
to unite or go in a herd; assemble or associate as a herd.
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Idioms about herd

    ride herd on, to have charge or control of; maintain discipline over: He rode herd on 40 students in each class.

Origin of herd

1
First recorded before 1000; Middle English; Old English heord; cognate with Gothic hairda, German Herde

synonym study for herd

1. See flock1.

grammar notes for herd

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH herd

heard, herd

Other definitions for herd (2 of 2)

herd2
[ hurd ]
/ hɜrd /

noun
a person in charge of a herd (usually used in combination): a cowherd;a goatherd;a shepherd.
verb (used with object)
to tend, drive, or lead (cattle, sheep, etc.).
to conduct or drive (a group of people) to a destination: The teacher herded the children into the classroom.

Origin of herd

2
First recorded before 900; Middle English herd(e), hirde, Old English hierde, hirde, hyrde; cognate with Gothic hairdeis, German Hirt(e); derivative of herd1
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use herd in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for herd (1 of 2)

herd1
/ (hɜːd) /

noun
a large group of mammals living and feeding together, esp a group of cattle, sheep, etc
often derogatory a large group of people
derogatory the large mass of ordinary people
verb
to collect or be collected into or as if into a herd

Word Origin for herd

Old English heord; related to Old Norse hjörth, Gothic hairda, Old High German herta, Greek kórthus troop

British Dictionary definitions for herd (2 of 2)

herd2
/ (hɜːd) /

noun
  1. archaic, or dialect a man or boy who tends livestock; herdsman
  2. (in combination)goatherd; swineherd
verb (tr)
to drive forwards in a large group
to look after (livestock)

Word Origin for herd

Old English hirde; related to Old Norse hirthir, Gothic hairdeis, Old High German hirti, Old Saxon hirdi, herdi; see herd 1
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

Other Idioms and Phrases with herd

herd

see ride herd on.

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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