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lamb

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lamb¹

  • /ˈlæm/ UK
  • /ˈlam/ British, Northern England, Scotland
  • /ˈlæm/ Canada, US
  • [ˈlæm]
  • [ˈlɛə̯m] ~ [ˈleə̯m]
  • /ˈlæːm/ Australia
  • [ˈlæːm]
  • [ˈlɛːm] ~ [ˈleːm]
  • /ˈlɛm/ New Zealand

Rhymes with -æm

Where it comes from

From Middle English lamb, from Old English lamb, from Proto-West Germanic *lamb, from Proto-Germanic *lambaz, probably from Proto-Indo-European *h₁l̥h₁onbʰos, enlargement of *h₁elh₁én, ultimately from *h₁el-.

See also Dutch lam, German Lamm, Bavarian Lamperl, Danish lam, Swedish lamm, Finnish lammas, Scottish Gaelic lon (“elk”), Ancient Greek ἔλαφος (élaphos, “red deer”). More at elk.

noun lambs · lamber · lambren

  1. countable, uncountable A young sheep; especially, one younger than nine months. Mary had a little lamb, its fleece as white as snow.

    Similar: sheepling

  2. countable, obsolete, uncountable A young goat; a kid. The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], 1611, →OCLC, Exodus 12:5: “Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year: ye shall take it out from the sheep, or from the goats:”
  3. uncountable The flesh of a lamb used as food; (sometimes loosely) the flesh of a sheep of any age used as food.
  4. countable, figuratively, uncountable A person who is meek, docile, and easily led. Near-synonym: sheep

    Similar: sheep

  5. countable, uncountable Lambskin. They were as alike as prisoners, dressed in black silk waists and fitted skirts, with shawls of crimped black lamb across their shoulders.
  6. countable, uncountable A simple, unsophisticated person.
  7. countable, slang, uncountable One who ignorantly speculates on the stock exchange and is victimized.
  8. countable, slang, uncountable A fan of American singer, songwriter, actress, and record producer Mariah Carey (born 1969). Part of me revels in the campiness of Mariah’s butterfly metaphors and puppies-and-kittens existence. […] But I also genuinely love her music, including this album. I’m one of her lambs.

verb lambs · lambing · lambed

  1. intransitive Of a sheep, to give birth.
  2. intransitive, transitive To assist (sheep) to give birth. The shepherd was up all night, lambing her young ewes.

Lamb²

Where it comes from

1. From Middle English lamb as a nickname.

2. From a short form of Lambert.

3. Reduced Anglicized form of Irish Ó Luain.

4. Possibly also a translation of French agneau.

proper noun Lambs

  1. countable, uncountable A surname from Middle English.
  2. countable, uncountable An unincorporated community in Craig Township, Switzerland County, Indiana, United States.
  3. countable, uncountable An extinct town in Marion County, Missouri, United States.
  4. countable, uncountable An islet (small island) in the Firth of Forth, East Lothian council area, Scotland (OS grid ref NT5386).

Lamb³

Where it comes from

See Lamb of God. See also lamb.

proper noun the Lamb

  1. Jesus; the Lamb of God And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night. And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of t

    Similar: Paschal Lamb, Lamb of God, Agnus Dei

  2. The constellation and zodiacal sign Aries. The Fish, His Church in union bound; The Lamb, once slain, but now enthroned; The Bull the victory shall gain; The Twins, Divine and human reign.

Lamb⁴

Where it comes from

See lamb.

noun Lambs

  1. slang Alternative letter-case form of lamb (“a fan of Mariah Carey”). Mariah Carey’s memoir opens with the great line: “I refuse to acknowledge time, famously so.” As if to establish the rules of the book, then add, with a toss of hair, but you knew that. Most readers of The Meaning of Mariah Carey, which the record-smashing songstress wrote with Michaela Angela Davis

LAMB⁵

noun

  1. abbreviation, acronym, uncountable Acronym of lentigines, atrial myxomas, mucocutaneous myxomas, and blue naevi.

Thesaurus

Closest in meaning: dear, yean, ewe, ovine, sheep, sheepmeat, mutton, kitten, doe, brisket, deer, honeypot, honey, leg, chops, pregnancy

Translations

Every language

noun young sheep

Españolcordero
한국어어린양 eorinyang
日本語子羊 kohitsuji, 小羊 kohitsuji, ラム ramu
中文羊羔 yánggāo, 羔 gāo, 羔羊 gāoyáng
हिन्दीबर्रा barrā, मेमना memnā
Kiswahilimwanakondoo
Portuguêsanho, cordeiro
Françaisagneau, agnelle
DeutschLamm
Italianoagnello, agnellino, agnella
Ελληνικάαρνί arní
Românămiel, mioară, mia
Русскийягнёнок jagnjónok, а́гнец ágnec, бара́шек barášek
Tiếng Việtcừu con, cừu non
العربيةحَمَل ḥamal, خَرُوف ḵarūf
עבריתטָלֶה talé, שֶׂה se

noun flesh of lamb as food

Españolcordero, carne de cordero
한국어양고기 yanggogi
日本語ラム ramu, 羊肉 yōniku
中文羊肉 yángròu
Portuguêscordeiro
Françaisagneau
DeutschLamm, Lammfleisch
Italianoagnello
Ελληνικάαρνί arní
Românămiel
Русскийбара́нина baránina, ягня́тина jagnjátina
العربيةلَحْم اَلضَّأْن laḥm aḍ-ḍaʔn, خَرُوف ḵarūf
עבריתטָלֶה talé, כֶּבֶשׂ kéves

noun meek person

Españolborrego, borrega
中文羔羊 gāoyáng
Portuguêscordeiro
Ελληνικάαρνάκι arnáki
Românămielușel
Русскийовца́ ovcá, ове́чка ovéčka, ягнёнок jagnjónok, а́гнец ágnec
עבריתשֶׂה se

verb of a sheep, to give birth

Françaismettre bas

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Cite this
MLA

"lamb." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/lamb. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

lamb. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/lamb

Chicago

"lamb." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/lamb.

BibTeX
@misc{lamb_2026,
  title = {lamb},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/lamb},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}