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lamb

noun
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\ ˈlam How to pronounce lamb (audio) \

Definition of lamb

 (Entry 1 of 5)

1a : a young sheep especially : one that is less than one year old or without permanent teeth
b : the young of various animals (such as the smaller antelopes) other than sheep
2a : a gentle or weak person
b : dear, pet
c : a person easily cheated or deceived especially in trading securities
3a : the flesh of a lamb used as food
b : lambskin

lamb

verb
lambed; lambing; lambs

Definition of lamb (Entry 2 of 5)

intransitive verb

: to bring forth a lamb

transitive verb

1 : to bring forth (a lamb)
2 : to tend (ewes) at lambing time

Lamb

biographical name (1)
\ ˈlam How to pronounce Lamb (audio) \

Definition of Lamb (Entry 3 of 5)

Charles 1775–1834 pseudonym Elia \ ˈe-​lē-​ə , commonly ˈē-​ \ English essayist and critic

Lamb

biographical name (2)

Definition of Lamb (Entry 4 of 5)

William 1779–1848 2nd Viscount Melbourne English statesman

Lamb

biographical name (3)

Definition of Lamb (Entry 5 of 5)

Willis Eugene 1913–2008 American physicist

Illustration of lamb

Illustration of lamb

Noun

lamb 3a: A wholesale cuts: 1 leg, 2 loin, 3 rack, 4 breast, 5 shank, 6 shoulder; B retail cuts: a leg, b sirloin chops and roast, c loin chops, rolled loin roast, d patties and chopped roast, e rib chops, crown roast, f riblets, stew, and stuffed or rolled breast, g shoulder roast, shoulder chops, h neck slices, i shanks, j blade chops, k arm chops

In the meaning defined above

Other Words from lamb Synonyms & Antonyms Example Sentences Learn More about lamb

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Other Words from lamb

Noun

lamblike \ ˈlam-​ˌlīk How to pronounce Lamb (audio) \ adjective
lamby \ ˈla-​mē How to pronounce Lamb (audio) \ adjective

Verb

lamber \ ˈla-​mər How to pronounce Lamb (audio) \ noun

Synonyms & Antonyms for lamb

Synonyms: Noun

Antonyms: Noun

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Examples of lamb in a Sentence

Noun She's as gentle as a lamb. the new guys at football camp were lambs who hardly knew what awaited them Verb The ewes will lamb soon.
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Recent Examples on the Web: Noun Maybe take the train to Edinburgh, and have a pint and a lamb pie at a pub in the city’s West End. — Carl Nolte, SFChronicle.com, "Sublime winter sunset sends a clear message: Better times ahead," 2 Jan. 2021 Honey-Rosemary Lamb Sandwich Serve up a delicious lamb sandwich to your hungry crew this weekend. — Sunset Magazine, "These Lamb Burger Recipes Open Up a Whole New World of Hearty, Powerful Toppings," 29 Dec. 2020 Dinner at the Venetian Chop House Restaurant is a la carte and upscale with entrees such as 1.5-pound lobster thermidor or duo lamb porterhouse. — Amy Drew Thompson, orlandosentinel.com, "Ring in 2021 with a bang & a bite," 23 Dec. 2020 By contrast, there could be a lot of leftover lamb, particularly as the port closures frustrate processors’ efforts at a final sales push to the EU before a no-deal Brexit risks adding hefty tariffs to the bloc. — Megan Durisin, Bloomberg.com, "U.K. Border Crisis Puts Fruit Supply at Risk While Meat Piles Up," 22 Dec. 2020 A New Year's Eve package serves 2 ($150) or 4 ($275) and comes with choices: lobster imperial or Moroccan lamb cigars; rigatoni or truffled ravioli; filet mignon or market catch. — Sharyn Jackson, Star Tribune, "25 Twin Cities restaurants offering takeout meals for New Year's Eve," 22 Dec. 2020 Menu items include lamb tartare, grilled octopus and duck confit toast. — Sarah Blaskovich, Dallas News, "2 restaurants, a brasserie and a‘nontraditional’ Japanese restaurant, opening in downtown Dallas," 9 Dec. 2020 Then a person uses a smaller buffing wheel and, eventually, soft lamb’s wool to perfect the polish by hand. — New York Times, "How to Build a Guitar," 28 Nov. 2020 The chef is at home over his smoldering, double-decker grill outside of Marjie’s Grill, tending lamb leg, pork shoulder or even the whole cabbages that get cooked down for a unique house specialty. — Ian Mcnulty, NOLA.com, "Marjie’s Grill founders will open new seafood restaurant on Oak Street," 18 Nov. 2020 Recent Examples on the Web: Verb Fiennes turned up to help out for a week during lambing season wearing a black trenchcoat and leather gloves. — Sam Knight, The New Yorker, "Can Farming Make Space for Nature?," 10 Feb. 2020 Things are worse in lambing season when criminals can double or triple their takings. — The Economist, "From fly-tipping to sheep rustling, Britain’s cops crack down on rural crime," 25 July 2019 As the weather went from bad to worse, many farmers fell short on feed — particularly important now, a month before lambing season — and water supplies were cut off because of frozen pipes. — Ceylan Yeginsu, New York Times, "‘I’ve Never Seen Anything Like This’: Snow Brings Rural U.K. to a Halt," 6 Mar. 2018 This is accomplished by different diets (grain vs. a grain and hay diet) and lambing at different times of the year. — Amy Dewall Dadmun, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Change it up with lamb burgers on greens," 16 Sep. 2017 Coyotes can do a lot of damage, especially during the fall during lambing season. — Gabriel Thompson, Longreads, "Chasing the Harvest: ‘If You Want to Die, Stay at the Ranch’," 17 May 2017 Just across the North Carolina border in Virginia, Craig Rogers is deep into lambing season. — Kim Severson, New York Times, "Ham or Lamb? The Easter Choice May Be Changing," 11 Apr. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'lamb.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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First Known Use of lamb

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

1611, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

History and Etymology for lamb

Noun

Middle English, from Old English; akin to Old High German lamb lamb

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Time Traveler for lamb

Time Traveler

The first known use of lamb was before the 12th century

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Statistics for lamb

Last Updated

11 Jan 2021

Cite this Entry

“Lamb.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/lamb. Accessed 17 Jan. 2021.

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More Definitions for lamb

lamb

noun
How to pronounce Lamb (audio)

English Language Learners Definition of lamb

 (Entry 1 of 2)

: a young sheep
: the meat of a lamb
informal : an innocent, weak, or gentle person

lamb

verb

English Language Learners Definition of lamb (Entry 2 of 2)

of a sheep : to give birth to a lamb

See the full definition for lamb in the English Language Learners Dictionary

lamb

noun
\ ˈlam How to pronounce lamb (audio) \

Kids Definition of lamb

 (Entry 1 of 2)

1 : a young sheep usually less than one year old
2 : the meat of a lamb used as food

lamb

verb
lambed; lambing

Kids Definition of lamb (Entry 2 of 2)

: to give birth to a lamb The ewes will lamb next month.

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More from Merriam-Webster on lamb

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for lamb

Nglish: Translation of lamb for Spanish Speakers

Britannica English: Translation of lamb for Arabic Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about lamb

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