shepherded; shepherding; shepherds
1
: to tend as a shepherd
2
: to guide or guard in the manner of a shepherd
shepherded the bill through Congress
Synonyms
Examples of shepherd in a Sentence
Verb
She carefully shepherded the children across the street.
They shepherded the bill through Congress.
Recent Examples on the Web
Gabrielle Rockson, Peoplemag, 3 Apr. 2024
The majority of Uncle Sam’s shepherds (and other breeds) — almost 3,000 — work for the Department of Homeland Security.
—Andrew Van Dam, Washington Post, 15 Mar. 2024
Live music and specialty foods like bangers & mash, corned beef sandwiches and shepherds pie.
—Luann Gibbs, The Enquirer, 13 Mar. 2024
Choices include baked fish cakes, corned beef and cabbage, lamb and dumpling stew, and shepherd’s pie.
—Heidi Finley, Charlotte Observer, 1 Mar. 2024
According to the German Kennel Club (VDH), other national favorites like the German shepherd and schnauzer, and even Snoopy himself, the beagle, could also be affected.
—Frederik Pleitgen, CNN, 27 Mar. 2024
During her stay, the 6-year-old pup found comfort in a German shepherd named Maggie.
—Simone Jasper, Miami Herald, 25 Mar. 2024
The golden retriever and shepherd mix get to enjoy romping across two backyards thanks to their owners' new installation
Two neighbors in California's Bay Area have found the perfect way to keep their dogs, who are best friends, entertained.
—Angela Andaloro, Peoplemag, 18 Mar. 2024
Two Australian shepherds under the table had Haley stickers on their fur.
—Antonia Hitchens, The New Yorker, 23 Feb. 2024
Charlie Campbell, TIME, 12 Apr. 2024
But the sincerity and the hard work can’t seem to shepherd these Southern characters into the modest domain of the plausible.
—New York Times, 26 Mar. 2024
What was once a holy ground shepherded by a rapturous man simply known as Pastor (Steven Pasquale), model evangelical teen Dawn O’Keefe (Alyse Alan Louis) and her angelic group of Promise Keeper Girls morphs into a breeding ground for sin.
—Brittani Samuel, Washington Post, 20 Mar. 2024
The students arrived in a caravan of cars, shepherded by Atshan, and piled onto couches in the living room, laughing, starting sentences in Arabic and finishing them in English.
—Hannah Goldfield, The New Yorker, 18 Mar. 2024
The Hostage and Wrongful Detainee Day Act was introduced and shepherded through Congress last year by Reps. Haley Stevens and French Hill, and Sen. Chris Coons.
—Camilla Schick, CBS News, 8 Mar. 2024
In response, DeSantis shepherded a bill granting him the authority to appoint every member of the special tax district’s five-member governing body.
—Winston Cho, The Hollywood Reporter, 27 Mar. 2024
Women shepherded children to a folding table where a face painter sketched Spider-Man masks and Palestinian flags on their cheeks.
—Eliza Griswold, The New Yorker, 21 Mar. 2024
Which is why the retraction of the article is more than an act of cowardice and a betrayal of a writer whose work the magazine shepherded to publication.
—Phil Klay, The Atlantic, 12 Mar. 2024
Noun
Harmon first spoke out about Oliver's death on Monday, mourning the loss with a series of photos and videos of the German shepherd/beagle mix.
—Gabrielle Rockson, Peoplemag, 3 Apr. 2024
The majority of Uncle Sam’s shepherds (and other breeds) — almost 3,000 — work for the Department of Homeland Security.
—Andrew Van Dam, Washington Post, 15 Mar. 2024
Live music and specialty foods like bangers & mash, corned beef sandwiches and shepherds pie.
—Luann Gibbs, The Enquirer, 13 Mar. 2024
Choices include baked fish cakes, corned beef and cabbage, lamb and dumpling stew, and shepherd’s pie.
—Heidi Finley, Charlotte Observer, 1 Mar. 2024
According to the German Kennel Club (VDH), other national favorites like the German shepherd and schnauzer, and even Snoopy himself, the beagle, could also be affected.
—Frederik Pleitgen, CNN, 27 Mar. 2024
During her stay, the 6-year-old pup found comfort in a German shepherd named Maggie.
—Simone Jasper, Miami Herald, 25 Mar. 2024
The golden retriever and shepherd mix get to enjoy romping across two backyards thanks to their owners' new installation
Two neighbors in California's Bay Area have found the perfect way to keep their dogs, who are best friends, entertained.
—Angela Andaloro, Peoplemag, 18 Mar. 2024
Two Australian shepherds under the table had Haley stickers on their fur.
—Antonia Hitchens, The New Yorker, 23 Feb. 2024
Verb
In 2011, Lan was enlisted to shepherd the merger of the troubled Saigon Joint Commercial Bank, or SCB, with two other lenders in a plan overseen by the Vietnam Central Bank.
—Charlie Campbell, TIME, 12 Apr. 2024
But the sincerity and the hard work can’t seem to shepherd these Southern characters into the modest domain of the plausible.
—New York Times, 26 Mar. 2024
What was once a holy ground shepherded by a rapturous man simply known as Pastor (Steven Pasquale), model evangelical teen Dawn O’Keefe (Alyse Alan Louis) and her angelic group of Promise Keeper Girls morphs into a breeding ground for sin.
—Brittani Samuel, Washington Post, 20 Mar. 2024
The students arrived in a caravan of cars, shepherded by Atshan, and piled onto couches in the living room, laughing, starting sentences in Arabic and finishing them in English.
—Hannah Goldfield, The New Yorker, 18 Mar. 2024
The Hostage and Wrongful Detainee Day Act was introduced and shepherded through Congress last year by Reps. Haley Stevens and French Hill, and Sen. Chris Coons.
—Camilla Schick, CBS News, 8 Mar. 2024
In response, DeSantis shepherded a bill granting him the authority to appoint every member of the special tax district’s five-member governing body.
—Winston Cho, The Hollywood Reporter, 27 Mar. 2024
Women shepherded children to a folding table where a face painter sketched Spider-Man masks and Palestinian flags on their cheeks.
—Eliza Griswold, The New Yorker, 21 Mar. 2024
Which is why the retraction of the article is more than an act of cowardice and a betrayal of a writer whose work the magazine shepherded to publication.
—Phil Klay, The Atlantic, 12 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'shepherd.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near shepherd
Cite this Entry
“Shepherd.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/shepherd. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
shepherd
1 of 2 noun
shep·herd
ˈshep-ərd 
1
: a person who takes care of sheep
2
shepherd
2 of 2 verb
: to care for as or as if a shepherd
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