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Added 9 October 2026

shepherd

/ˈʃɛpəd/ noun

In Latin: pastor, ūpiliō, pecorarius Wiktionary

noun Definition from WordNet 3.1, Princeton University. Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about shepherd at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

A clergyman who watches over a group of people.
A herder of sheep (on an open range); someone who keeps the sheep together in a flock.

verb

Watch over like a shepherd, as a teacher of her pupils.
Tend as a shepherd, as of sheep or goats.

Origin

From Middle English schepherde, from Old English sċēaphierde, a compound of sċēap (“sheep”) and hierde (“herdsman”), equivalent to modern sheep + herd (“herder”).

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

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