Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

herd

/hɝd/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: 3.77 in modern English

Syllables
herd
IPA
/hɝd/
8
Scrabble Score
4
Letters
1
Syllables
4
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A number of domestic animals assembled together under the watch or ownership of a keeper.

noun

Any collection of animals gathered or travelling in a company.

noun

A crowd, a mass of people or things; a rabble.

Derogatory

noun

A collection of things, especially vehicles.

verb

To unite or associate in a herd; to feed or run together, or in company.

Intransitive verb

verb

To unite or associate in a herd

Transitive verb

verb

To manage, care for or guard a herd

Transitive verb

verb

To associate; to ally oneself with, or place oneself among, a group or company.

Intransitive verb

Example Sentences

Etymology

From Middle English herde, heerde, heorde, from Old English hierd, heord (“herd, flock; keeping, care, custody”), from Proto-West Germanic *herdu, from Proto-Germanic *herdō (“herd”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)kerdʰ- (“file, row, herd”). Cognate with German Herde, Danish hjord, Swedish hjord. Non-Germanic cognates include Albanian herdhe (“nest”) and Serbo-Croatian krdo.

Origin

Word Breakdown

  • Root: *(s)kerdʰ-, herde, hierd, *herdu, *herdō, hirde

Regional Pronunciation

  • American English: /hɝd/
  • British English: /hɜːd/

Usage

Inflected Forms

herds (plural) herds (present, singular) herding (participle, present) herded (participle, past) herded (past)

Derived Forms

flerd herdbook herdboy herdess herdful herdgroom herdless herdlike herdman herdowner herdsboy herdswoman

Phrases

bot herd herd behaviour herd boar herd immunity herd instinct herd mentality herd path put the herd on someone

Frequently Paired Words

rancher pastoralist drove gather muster ride herd on round up

Synonyms

wrangle herder herdsman ruck crowd

Homonyms

heard (most accents)

Rhymes With

third one-third heard word bird referred occurred transferred preferred absurd nerd incurred

Questions

How do you pronounce herd?
The recorded pronunciation is /hɝd/.
What does herd mean?
A number of domestic animals assembled together under the watch or ownership of a keeper.
Where does herd come from?
It is traced to Middle English.

How to pronounce herd

  1. Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “herd”.
  2. Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/hɝd/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
  3. Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “herd”.
  4. Repeat and practice — Say “herd” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.