Meanings
verbcount sheep (third-person singular simple present counts sheep, present participle counting sheep, simple past and past participle counted sheep)
present singular third person counts sheep · participle present counting sheep · participle past counted sheep · past counted sheep
Origin
See count and sheep. Stories of counting sheep to sleep extend back to at least as early as 12th-century Spain and 13th-century Italy from prior Arab stories.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Chinese Mandarin 數羊 /数羊
- 數羊 /数羊 (shǔyáng)to attempt to go to sleep by thinking of something boring
Finnish laskea lampaita
- laskea lampaitato attempt to go to sleep by thinking of something boring
French compter les moutons
- compter les moutonsto attempt to go to sleep by thinking of something boring
German Schäfchen zählen
- Schäfchen zählento attempt to go to sleep by thinking of something boring
Polish liczyć barany, liczyć owce
- liczyć baranyto attempt to go to sleep by thinking of something boring
- liczyć owceto attempt to go to sleep by thinking of something boring
Cite this entry
APA
count sheep. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/count%20sheep
MLA
“count sheep.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/count%20sheep. Accessed November 3, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “count sheep,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/count%20sheep.
Source: count sheep on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.