black sheep
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English
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Pronunciation
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Noun
[edit]black sheep (plural black sheep)
- (idiomatic) A nonconformist; an unusual or unconventional person, who may be rejected or disdained by others for this reason.
- Synonyms: see Thesaurus:maverick
- He always was the black sheep in the family, as an artist among doctors and lawyers.
- (idiomatic) A person who is not wholesome, honest, or trustworthy.
- Synonym: bad apple
- Antonym: golden child
- 1871–1872, George Eliot [pseudonym; Mary Ann Evans], chapter LXXI, in Middlemarch […], volume (please specify |volume=I to IV), Edinburgh, London: William Blackwood and Sons, →OCLC, book VII:
- “It’s just what I should have expected,” said Mr. Hawley, mounting his horse. “Any cursed alien blood, Jew, Corsican, or Gypsy.”¶ “I know he’s one of your black sheep, Hawley. But he is really a disinterested, unworldly fellow,” said Mr. Farebrother, smiling.
- 2003 April 10, Adam Shatz, “The Native Informant”, in The Nation(US)[1], archived from the original on 27 June 2014:
- Kissinger, after all, is a figure of renown among the self-appointed leaders of "the people from whom he stems" and a frequent speaker at Jewish charity galas, whereas Ajami is a man almost entirely deserted by his people, a pariah at what should be his hour of triumph. In Arnoun, a family friend told me, "Fouad is a black sheep because of his staunch support for the Israelis."
- 2021-2022 Winter, Albert Keiser, “Foundation Request”, in SAR Magazine, volume 116, number 3, Louisville, KY: Sons of the American Revolution, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 12, column 1:
- To get into the SAR, we all do a great deal of research into our families. It can help you connect with your family and learn about your ancestors. If you have a black sheep (we all do), you can learn from them and not do whatever it was that they did. The SAR gives you experiences you wouldn't have had otherwise.
- (idiomatic) A worker who refuses to strike; a scab.
- 1985, Bryn Perrins, Trade Union Law, page 232:
- It used to be the law that a black sheep could be brought into the fold of conformity: where there were 'recognised terms of employment – a standard created by a collective agreement or award covering a substantial proportion of the employers and workers in any trade or industry […]
- Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see black, sheep.
- Baa baa black sheep have you any wool? Yes sir, yes sir, Three bags full.
Translations
[edit]nonconformist
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person who is not wholesome
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