Southdown

[ south-doun ]

/ ˈsaʊθˌdaʊn /

noun

one of an English breed of sheep, yielding mutton of high quality.

Origin of Southdown

1780–90; named after South Downs, where the breed was developed

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Examples from the Web for southdown

These are the Southdown, and the Cotswold, Leicester, or other improved breeds of long-wooled sheep.
Rural Architecture|Lewis Falley Allen
Hail, thou purveyor of shrimps and honest prescriber of Southdown mutton!
The Newcomes|William Makepeace Thackeray
It resembles the Southdown more than any other breed, having the same grey, or brownish grey hue, and a similar shape.
The Stock-Feeder's Manual|Charles Alexander Cameron
Now as between the Merino and the Southdown sheep there is a great gulf fixed.
The Cassowary|Stanley Waterloo

At that season, we got excellent wild turkeys there, and good Southdown mutton, and one could not complain of such living.
Vanished Arizona|Martha Summerhayes

British Dictionary definitions for southdown

Southdown

/ (ˈsaʊθˌdaʊn) /

noun

an English breed of sheep with short wool and a greyish-brown face and legs

Word Origin for Southdown

C18: so called because it was originally bred on the South Downs

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