fleece

1 of 2

noun

1
a
: the coat of wool covering a wool-bearing animal (such as a sheep)
b
: the wool obtained from a sheep at one shearing
2
a
: any of various soft or woolly coverings
b
: a soft bulky deep-piled knitted or woven fabric used chiefly for clothing

fleece

2 of 2

verb

fleeced; fleecing

transitive verb

1
a
: to strip of money or property by fraud or extortion
b
: to charge excessively for goods or services
2
: to remove the fleece from : shear
3
: to dot or cover with fleecy masses

Examples of fleece in a Sentence

Noun learning how to shear the fleece off a sheep Verb Don't let that salesman fleece you. an unsuspecting tourist fleeced by a scam artist
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Noun
Her husband Justin, meanwhile, wore his usual bulbous silhouette and teeny headgear: in a large textured black fleece, a red hoodie, beige trousers, suede brown moccasins, and a tight gray beanie. Anna Cafolla, Vogue, 27 Mar. 2025 Plus, the Select team spoke to experts about how to take care of more than 23 fabric types, including cashmere, denim, fleece, leather and more. Elizabeth Robinson, NBC News, 28 Feb. 2025
Verb
House Democrats accused Trump of fleecing taxpayers after The Washington Post reported that his company had charged Secret Service agents for rooms used while protecting him. Russel Honoré, Newsweek, 5 Mar. 2025 The pair soon took off after fleecing their mark, with the man meeting up with another woman to make unauthorized purchases with the victim’s credit card, cops said. Nicholas Williams, New York Daily News, 2 Mar. 2025 See All Example Sentences for fleece

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English flees, from Old English flēos; akin to Middle High German vlius fleece and perhaps to Latin pluma feather, down

First Known Use

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

1537, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of fleece was before the 12th century

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Fleece.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fleece. Accessed 2 Apr. 2025.

Kids Definition

fleece

1 of 2 noun
1
: the woolly coat of an animal (as a sheep)
2
a
: any of various soft or woolly coverings
b
: a soft bulky knitted or woven fabric used especially for clothing
fleecy
ˈflē-sē
adjective

fleece

2 of 2 verb
fleeced; fleecing
1
: to rob by trickery
2
: to remove the fleece from : shear

More from Merriam-Webster on fleece

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