variants
or less commonly aoudad sheep
: a wild, chiefly brown bovine (Ammotragus lervia) that is closely related to goats and sheep, is native to dry, rocky, mountainous terrain of North Africa but has been introduced into the southwestern U.S., northern Mexico, and Spain, and has a fringe of long hairs extending from the neck to the inner forelegs and horns that curve outward, back, and down : barbary sheep
… an aoudad from the Atlas Mountains of Morocco bullies its way past a pair of hungry blue-legged ostriches …—
Robert F. Jones
Robert F. JonesExamples of aoudad in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Now a separate disease is spreading among aoudad in West Texas.
—Hanna Wickes, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 28 Apr. 2026
Compare that to the more than 20,000 aoudad now roaming the same landscape.
—Hanna Wickes, Kansas City Star, 27 Apr. 2026
The agency is also working with research partners, including Texas A&M University and Borderlands Research Institute, to study how diseases spread between aoudad and native species and to develop more effective approaches to population control.
—Hanna Wickes, Miami Herald, 27 Apr. 2026
Researchers have identified aoudad as potential carriers of the disease, often without showing symptoms.
—Hanna Wickes, Charlotte Observer, 27 Apr. 2026
Unlike the aoudad, most creatures aren't equipped to master or even overcome the canyon's vertical reaches.
—Joe Yogerst, CNN, 16 June 2021
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Hanna Wickes, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 28 Apr. 2026
Compare that to the more than 20,000 aoudad now roaming the same landscape.
—Hanna Wickes, Kansas City Star, 27 Apr. 2026
The agency is also working with research partners, including Texas A&M University and Borderlands Research Institute, to study how diseases spread between aoudad and native species and to develop more effective approaches to population control.
—Hanna Wickes, Miami Herald, 27 Apr. 2026
Researchers have identified aoudad as potential carriers of the disease, often without showing symptoms.
—Hanna Wickes, Charlotte Observer, 27 Apr. 2026
Unlike the aoudad, most creatures aren't equipped to master or even overcome the canyon's vertical reaches.
—Joe Yogerst, CNN, 16 June 2021
Cite this Entry
“Aoudad.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/aoudad. Accessed 5 May. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
aoudad
noun
aou·dad
ˈau̇-ˌdad 
ˈä-u̇-
: a wild sheep of North Africa
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