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1

fleece

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noun \ˈflēs\

Definition of fleece

  1. 1a :  the coat of wool covering a wool-bearing animal (such as a sheep)b :  the wool obtained from a sheep at one shearing

  2. 2a :  any of various soft or woolly coveringsb :  a soft bulky deep-piled knitted or woven fabric used chiefly for clothing

See fleece defined for English-language learners

See fleece defined for kids

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Examples of fleece in a Sentence

  1. learning how to shear the fleece off a sheep

Origin and Etymology of fleece

Middle English flees, from Old English flēos; akin to Middle High German vlius fleece and perhaps to Latin pluma feather, down


First Known Use: before 12th century

fleece Synonyms

Synonyms
coat, fur, hair, jacket, pelage, pile, wool
Related Words
undercoat, underfur; hide, leather, pelt, skin

Other Textiles Terms

batt, bias, brocade, duck, flock, lawn, toile

2

fleece

verb

Definition of fleece

fleeced

;

fleecing
  1. transitive verb

  2. 1a :  to strip of money or property by fraud or extortionb :  to charge excessively for goods or services

  3. 2 :  to remove the fleece from :  shear

  4. 3 :  to dot or cover with fleecy masses

See fleece defined for English-language learners

Examples of fleece in a Sentence

  1. Don't let that salesman fleece you.

  2. an unsuspecting tourist fleeced by a scam artist

1537

First Known Use of fleece

1537

fleece Synonyms

Synonyms
beat, bilk, bleed, cheat, chisel, chouse, con, cozen, defraud, diddle, do, do in, euchre, fiddle, flimflam, gaff, gyp, hose [slang], hustle, mulct, nobble [British slang], pluck, ream, rip off, rook, screw, shake down, short, shortchange, skin, skunk, squeeze, stick, stiff, sting, sucker, swindle, thimblerig, victimize, sell a bill of goods to, take for a ride, take to the cleaners
Related Words
extort, wrench, wrest, wring; clip, gouge, nick, overcharge, soak; exploit, milk; deceive, dupe, fool, gull, trick; rope (in); betray, bitch, double-cross; bamboozle, fast-talk

Other Animal Husbandry Terms

apiary, bantam, calico, girth, hogwash, mast, rut

FLEECE Defined for English Language Learners

fleece

play
noun

Definition of fleece for English Language Learners

  • : the woolly coat of a sheep

  • : a soft cloth that is used to make warm clothes

  • : a jacket made from this cloth

fleece

verb

Definition of fleece for English Language Learners

  • : to deceive and take money from (someone)

FLEECE Defined for Kids

1

fleece

play
noun \ˈflēs\

Definition of fleece for Students

  1. :  the woolly coat of an animal and especially a sheep

2

fleece

play
verb

Definition of fleece for Students

fleeced

;

fleecing

  1. :  to rob or cheat by trickery

Learn More about fleece

  1. See words that rhyme with fleece Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for fleece Spanish Central: Translation of fleece Nglish: Translation of fleece for Spanish speakers

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