English Explanatory Dictionary

flock

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. A number of birds together in a group, such as those gathered together for the purpose of migration.
  2. A large number of animals associated together in a group; commonly used of sheep, but (dated) also used for goats, farmed animals, and a wide variety of animals.
  3. Those served by a particular pastor or shepherd.
  4. A large number of people.
  5. A religious congregation.
verb
  1. To congregate in or head towards a place in large numbers.
  2. To flock to; to crowd.
noun
  1. Coarse tufts of wool or cotton used in bedding.
  2. A lock of wool or hair.
  3. Very fine sifted woollen refuse, especially that from shearing the nap of cloths, formerly used as a coating for wallpaper to give it a velvety or clothlike appearance; also, the dust of vegetable fibre used for a similar purpose.
verb
  1. To coat a surface with dense fibers or particles; especially, to create a dense arrangement of fibers with a desired nap.
  2. To cover a Christmas tree with artificial snow.
  3. To treat a pool with chemicals to remove suspended particles.
name
  1. A surname.

Pronunciation

/flɒk/ /flɑk/ en-us-flock.ogg

Word forms

flock flocks flocking flocked

Etymology

From Middle English flok, from Old English flocc (“flock, company, troop”), from Proto-West Germanic *flokk, from Proto-Germanic *flukkaz (“crowd, troop”). Cognate with German Low German Flock (“crowd, flock”), Danish flok (“flock”), Swedish flock (“flock”), Norwegian flokk (“flock”), Faroese flokkur (“flock”), Icelandic flokkur (“flock, group”). Related also to Norman fliotchet (“flock, crowd”), from Old Norse. Perhaps related to Old English folc (“crowd, troop, band”). More at folk.

Synonyms

bunch gaggle horde host legion litter nest rabble swarm throng wake congregation fold flock laity floc

Derived words

flerd flock camera flocker flockful flockless flocklike flockling flockmaster flockmate flockmeal flockowner flockwise flocky flower of the flock species flock subflock birds of a feather flock together birds of the feather flock together flock together flock paper flock worker's lung flocked
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