Wether - Definition, Meaning & Synonyms

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SKIP TO CONTENT wether /ˈwɛðər/ /ˈwɛðə/ IPA guide

Other forms: wethers

A wether is a ram or billy goat that was castrated at a young age. Wethers can be housed with the female sheep or goats, but intact bucks and rams usually are kept separately.

Wether comes from an Old English word for – surprise!— a castrated ram. This word has been around as long as people have been talking about sheep, which is a long time. A bellwether is literally the lead wether that wears a bell, but now it’s come to refer to any leader. The word wether is rarely used unless you’re a shepherd or a farmer, for the rest of us it’s often just the wrong homophone, whether we care to admit it or not.

Definitions of wether

noun male sheep especially a castrated one see moresee less types: bellwether sheep that leads the herd often wearing a bell type of: sheep woolly usually horned ruminant mammal related to the goat

Pronunciation US /ˈwɛðər/ UK /ˈwɛðə/ Cite this entry Style: MLA

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Copy citation DISCLAIMER: These example sentences appear in various news sources and books to reflect the usage of the word ‘wether'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Vocabulary.com or its editors. Send us feedback Commonly confused words

weather / whether / wether

The weather outside is partly cloudy whether you like it that way or not. A wether, on the other hand, is a castrated sheep. You read that right.

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