wolf sheeps clothing

noun

any of several large carnivorous mammals of the genus Canis, of the dog family Canidae, especially C. lupus, usually hunting in packs, formerly common throughout the Northern Hemisphere but now chiefly restricted to the more unpopulated parts of its range.

the fur of such an animal.

any of various wolflike animals of different families, as the thylacine.

( initial capital letter ) Astronomy. the constellation Lupus.

the larva of any of various small insects infesting granaries.

a cruelly rapacious person.

Informal. a man who makes amorous advances to many women.

Music.

the harsh discord heard in certain chords of keyboard instruments, especially the organ, when tuned on some system of unequal temperament.

a chord or interval in which such a discord appears.

(in bowed instruments) a discordant or false vibration in a string due to a defect in structure or adjustment of the instrument.

verb (used with object)

to devour voraciously (often followed by down ): He wolfed his food.

00:10

Wolf sheeps clothing is always a great word to know.

So is flibbertigibbet. Does it mean:

a chattering or flighty, light-headed person.

a scrap or morsel of food left at a meal.

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verb (used without object)

10.

to hunt for wolves.

Idioms

11.

cry wolf, to give a false alarm: Is she really sick or is she just crying wolf?

12.

keep the wolf from the door, to avert poverty or starvation; provide sufficiently for: Their small inheritance kept the wolf from the door.

13.

throw to the wolves. throw ( def 57 ).

14.

wolf in sheep's clothing, a person who conceals his or her evil intentions or character beneath an innocent exterior.

Origin:
before 900; Middle English; Old English wulf; cognate with German Wolf, Old Norse ulfr, Gothic wulfs, Polish wilk, Lithuanian vil̃kas, Sanskrit vṛka; akin to Latin lupus, Greek lýkos

Related forms

wolf·like, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Link To wolf sheeps clothing

Collins

World English Dictionary

wolf (wʊlf)

—n , pl wolves
1.	See also timber wolf a predatory canine mammal, Canis lupus, which hunts in packs and was formerly widespread in North America and Eurasia but is now less commonRelated: lupine
2.	any of several similar and related canines, such as the red wolf and the coyote (prairie wolf)
3.	the fur of any such animal
4.	Tasmanian wolf another name for the thylacine
5.	a voracious, grabbing, or fiercely cruel person or thing
6.	informal a man who habitually tries to seduce women
7.	informal the destructive larva of any of various moths and beetles
8.	music Also called: wolf note
	a. an unpleasant sound produced in some notes played on the violin, cello, etc, owing to resonant vibrations of the belly
	b. See temperament an out-of-tune effect produced on keyboard instruments accommodated esp to the system of mean-tone temperament
9.	cry wolf to give a false alarm
10.	keep the wolf from the door to ward off starvation or privation
11.	lone wolf a person or animal who prefers to be alone
12.	throw to the wolves to abandon or deliver to destruction
13.	wolf in sheep's clothing a malicious person in a harmless or benevolent disguise

—vb (often foll by down)
14.	to gulp (down)
15.	(intr) to hunt wolves

Related: lupine

[Old English wulf; related to Old High German wolf, Old Norse ulfr, Gothic wulfs, Latin lupus and vulpēs fox]

'wolfish

—*adj*

'wolflike

—*adj*

Wolf (German vɔlf)

—n
1.	Friedrich August (ˈfriːdrɪç ˈauɡʊst). 1759--1824, German classical scholar, who suggested that the Homeric poems, esp the Iliad, are products of an oral tradition
2.	Hugo (ˈhuːɡo). 1860--1903, Austrian composer, esp of songs, including the Italienisches Liederbuch and the Spanisches Liederbuch
3.	Howlin'. See Howlin' Wolf

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline

Word Origin & History

wolf

O.E. wulf, from P.Gmc. *wulfaz (cf. O.S. wulf, O.N. ulfr, O.Fris., Du., O.H.G., Ger. wolf, Goth. wulfs), from PIE *wlqwos/*lukwos, from base *wlp-/*lup- (cf. Skt. vrkas, Avestan vehrka-; Albanian ulk; O.C.S. vluku; Rus. volcica; Lith. vilkas "wolf;" O.Pers. Varkana- "Hyrcania," district southeast of

the Caspian Sea, lit. "wolf-land;" probably also Gk. lykos, L. lupus). The verb meaning "eat like a wolf" is attested from 1862. Wolves as a symbol of lust are ancient, e.g. Roman slang lupa "whore," lit. "she-wolf" (preserved in Sp. loba, It. lupa, Fr. louve). The equation of "wolf" and "prostitute, sexually voracious female" persisted into 12c., but by Elizabethan times wolves had become primarily symbolic of male lust. The specific use of wolf for "sexually aggressive male" first recorded 1847; wolf-whistle first attested 1952. The image of a wolf in sheep's skin is attested from c.1400. See here for a discussion of "wolf" in I.E. history.

"This manne can litle skyl ... to saue himself harmlesse from the perilous accidentes of this world, keping ye wulf from the doore (as they cal it)." ["The Institution of a Gentleman," 1555]

Slang Dictionary

wolf definition

n.
a bold and aggressive male. (See also fine wolf.) : He sees himself as a lady-killer. The chicks see him as an old-fashioned wolf.

Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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Easton

Bible Dictionary

Wolf definition

Heb. zeeb, frequently referred to in Scripture as an emblem of treachery and cruelty. Jacob's prophecy, "Benjamin shall ravin as a wolf" (Gen. 49:27), represents the warlike character of that tribe (see Judg. 19-21). Isaiah represents the peace of Messiah's kingdom by the words, "The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb" (Isa. 11:6). The habits of the wolf are described in Jer. 5:6; Hab. 1:8; Zeph. 3:3; Ezek. 22:27; Matt. 7:15; 10:16; Acts 20:29. Wolves are still sometimes found in Palestine, and are the dread of shepherds, as of old.

Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary
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Matching Quote

"The origins of clothing are not practical. They are mystical and erotic. The primitive man in the wolf-pelt was not keeping dry; he was saying: "Look what I killed. Aren't I the best?""

-Katharine Hamnett

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