Ser la oveja negra
To be the black sheep.
to be the black sheep; **to be the black sheep**; **to be the odd one out**; **to be the family black sheep**; **to be the outcast** (in stronger contexts)
Ser la oveja negra means to be the black sheep, to be the odd one out, or to be the family disgrace (depending on the context).
Siempre fue la oveja negra de la familia.
He's always been the black sheep of the family.
Me consideran la oveja negra porque elegí otro camino.
They see me as the black sheep because I chose a different path.
Es la oveja negra del grupo.
She's the black sheep of the group.
Durante años fue la oveja negra de la empresa.
For years, he was the company's black sheep.
It describes someone who is viewed as different from the rest of the group, often because of their behaviour, lifestyle or reputation.
- a family member who constantly causes problems
- someone who fails to meet the group's expectations
- the outsider in a family or organisation
- a person with a controversial reputation
- someone who is perceived as different from everyone else
The expression comes from sheep farming.
In flocks where almost all sheep had white wool, a black sheep stood out immediately.
Because black wool was traditionally harder to process and less economically valuable, the black sheep became a symbol of someone regarded as undesirable or problematic.
Today the economic association has disappeared, but the metaphor remains.
The expression often carries a negative judgement, but not always.
In modern usage, someone may proudly describe themselves as la oveja negra because they rejected family expectations or chose a different lifestyle.
As a result, the idiom can sometimes express individuality rather than disgrace.
Many European languages share this same metaphor:
- Spanish: la oveja negra
- English: the black sheep
- French: le mouton noir
- Italian: la pecora nera
The remarkable similarity reflects the shared historical importance of sheep farming across Europe and the practical difference between white and black wool in traditional textile production.
This idiom has an almost identical English equivalent.
Simply translate it as:
- the black sheep
- the black sheep of the family
The meaning and usage are remarkably similar in both languages.
There are five hundred more.
The complete collection — no ads, on paper or Kindle.
Get the book on Amazon