— fleeceable , adj. — fleeceless , adj. — fleecelike , adj. — fleecer , n.
/flees/ , n. , v. , fleeced, fleecing .
n.
1. the coat of wool that covers a sheep or a similar animal.
2. the wool shorn from a sheep at one shearing.
3. something resembling a fleece: a fleece of clouds in a blue sky.
4. a fabric with a soft, silky pile, used for warmth, as for lining garments.
5. the soft nap or pile of such a fabric.
v.t.
6. to deprive of money or belongings by fraud, hoax, or the like; swindle: He fleeced the stranger of several dollars.
7. to remove the fleece of (a sheep).
8. to overspread, as with a fleece; fleck with fleecelike masses: a host of clouds fleecing the summer sky.
[ bef. 1000; ME flees, OE fleos, flys; c. MD vlies, MHG vlius, G Vlies ]