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goat herder

goat herder

4 3.2
A person who looks after and moves goats as a job
  • noun
translation icon : cabrero
  • In the countryside, a goat herder skillfully guides his animals to fresh pastures.
  • sheep and goat herder

I am the grandson of a goat herder.

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Examples

  • And I don't see any goat herders around here, do you?

  • Let's continue to celebrate our heirloom fava bean growers and our grass-fed goat herders.

    Academic text (2012)
  • Well, the life of a goat herder is not that demanding.

  • For the son of a Bedouin goat herder?

  • Masai goat herder making use of a cell phone

    Blog text (29)
  • They are mainly sheep and goat herders.

    Academic text (2018)
  • Now, because these goat herders are not Taliban, they're not bad guys.

  • Their livelihood as goat herders, small agriculturalists, and carnauba processors all but disappeared.

    Academic text (1994)
  • Day 2 saw very few cars, no pavement, and lots of goat herders, farmers, and nomadic Kuchi tribespeople leading camels.

    Blog text (28)
  • goat herder takes care of a flock of goats while roaming the hills.

Synonyms

herder
vsgoat herder
15 3.7

A person who looks after and moves animals like sheep or cattle

focuses specifically on caring for and managing goats
drover
vsgoat herder
15 9.4

A person who moves cattle or sheep from one place to another

focuses on everyday care and management rather than long distance moving
goatherd
vsgoat herder
2 7.6

A person who takes care of goats

is the identical role but written as two separate words
herdsman
vsgoat herder
1 5.0

A person who looks after and moves a group of animals like cows or sheep

is gender neutral and applies to any person doing the same job
pastoralist
vsgoat herder
  • Specialized
1 7.4

A person who raises and looks after grazing animals like cattle or sheep

is a narrower job focused on daily care and management of a goat flock
herdman
vsgoat herder
4.1

A person who looks after a group of animals like cows or sheep

limits this to caring and managing goats rather than other animals
herdswoman
vsgoat herder
7.1

A woman who looks after a group of farm animals like sheep or cattle

is neutral in gender and refers to any person doing the same work
kidder
vsgoat herder
  • Archaic
9.9

A person who looks after young goats

cares for the whole flock rather than only young animals

Surface Forms

goat herder singular
goat herders plural

Morphology

goat + herder

The meaning is directly compositional: 'goat' (an animal) + 'herder' (a person who herds livestock) yields a person who herds goats. This noun-noun/compound pattern is common cross-linguistically and follows regular English composition, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents will understand it.

Etymology

Goat herder comes from simple countryside life, where one person leads and watches a group of goats, often using a staff or a bell. The parts goat and herder paint a clear picture: someone who looks after goats, so it means 'a person who takes care of and manages a flock of goats'.