sheepishly
/ˈʃiː.pɪʃ.li/
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.49 in modern English
21
Scrabble Score
10
Letters
3
Syllables
7
Unique Chars
Meaning
adv
In a sheepish way; shyly; meekly; bashfully; self-consciously; with embarrassment.
Example Sentences
- "But Frank Fairbanks, a retired public administrator, had to sheepishly acknowledge that he had grass. “Unfortunately, like many of our central Phoenix neighbors, we have a green lawn which consumes more water than xeriscape,” he told the paper."
- "Renton’s big mistake is sheepishly to offer Sick Boy his stolen share 20 years on: £4,000 in a crumpled brown envelope. “What am I supposed to buy with that?” rages Sick Boy bitterly later. “A time machine?”"
Etymology
Etymology tree English sheepish Middle English -ly English -ly English sheepishly From sheepish + -ly.
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈʃiː.pɪʃ.li/
- British English: /ˈʃiː.pɪʃ.li/
Inflected Forms
more sheepishly (comparative)
most sheepishly (superlative)