often attributive
1
: the season for gathering in agricultural crops
the beginning of the harvest
2
: the act or process of gathering in a crop
assisting neighbors in their harvest
3
a
: a mature crop (as of grain or fruit) : yield
bountiful harvests
b
: the quantity of a natural product gathered in a single season
the salmon harvest
timber harvests
4
: an accumulated store or productive result
a harvest of revenue
harvested; harvesting; harvests
1
a
: to gather in (a crop) : reap
harvesting corn
b
: to gather, catch, hunt, or kill (salmon, oysters, deer, etc.) for human use, sport, or population control
c
: to remove or extract (something, such as living cells, tissues, or organs) from culture (see culture entry 1 sense 3) or from a living or recently deceased body especially for transplanting
2
a
: to accumulate a store of
has now harvested this new generation's scholarly labors—
M. J. Wiener
M. J. Wiener
b
: to win by achievement
the team harvested several awards
: to gather in a crop especially for food
sold it standing in the field to save himself the trouble of harvesting—Pearl Buck
Pearl Buck
harvester
noun
Synonyms
Examples of harvest in a Sentence
Noun
The beginning of the harvest varies from year to year.
It is time for the harvest.
They prayed for a bountiful harvest.
We had enormous harvests of corn this year.
Verb
It is time to harvest the wheat.
They want to harvest timber in these woods.
Recent Examples on the WebKristin Guy, Sunset Magazine, 16 Apr. 2024
That number significantly overshadows the harvest total from the 2023 youth weekend of 2,550 gobblers.
—Katie Hill, Outdoor Life, 10 Apr. 2024
For the creative class to point fingers at the large, breasty gentlemen adrift in tortilla-chip-laden pools of water is to gather a sour harvest of low-hanging fruit.
—Gary Shteyngart, The Atlantic, 4 Apr. 2024
Most cocoa beans are grown in West Africa, where extreme weather and changing climate patterns have upended crop harvests, which are forecast to fall short for the third year in a row.
—Alina Selyukh, NPR, 29 Mar. 2024
Farmers who grow fresh fruits and vegetables are often finding crop insurance prohibitively expensive — or even unavailable — as climate change escalates the likelihood of drought and floods capable of decimating harvests.
—Patrick Cooley, New York Times, 27 Mar. 2024
Travelers who stay in autumn can even help with the harvest.
—Katie Jackson, Robb Report, 12 Apr. 2024
Though there could be several reasons for this, we were disappointed as this meant our harvest was smaller.
—Rachel Ahrnsen, Better Homes & Gardens, 11 Apr. 2024
The amount of taxes owed was often linked to agriculture, with a certain percentage of a field’s harvest earmarked for state-run granaries or administrative storage centers.
—Kate McMahon, Smithsonian Magazine, 3 Apr. 2024
Anna Tingley, Variety, 25 Apr. 2024
Taking over such work from Ukrainian personnel would help protect civilians and support Ukraine’s economic recovery, as farmers are now struggling to plant and harvest crops in fields full of mines and other unexploded munitions.
—Alex Crowther, Foreign Affairs, 22 Apr. 2024
The common antivenom used to treat rattlesnake bites, for example, is made by immunizing donor animals such as horses or sheep with snake venom and then harvesting the antibodies produced by these animals, according to the World Health Organization.
—Shaun Goodwin, Idaho Statesman, 19 Apr. 2024
That loophole means that companies can harvest vast troves of highly sensitive brain data, sometimes for an unspecified number of years, and share or sell the information to third parties.
—Jonathan Moens, New York Times, 17 Apr. 2024
Anyway, to obtain higher levels of CBG, manufacturers need to harvest the plants earlier in the growth cycle.
—All Cbd Naturals, Discover Magazine, 3 Apr. 2024
Hunters there can now harvest birds until sunset, rather than having to shut their hunt down at 1 p.m. Spring hunts are bearded-bird only, and the current bag limit of two birds remains in place.
—Katie Hill, Outdoor Life, 10 Apr. 2024
The next best thing to fresh are frozen peaches, as they are harvested and frozen during the peak of peach season.
—Patricia S York, Southern Living, 9 Apr. 2024
At a time when most other food is largely unavailable or prohibitively expensive, Gazans can harvest khobeza themselves and cook it by itself, or with a few other ingredients.
—Bilal Shbair, New York Times, 7 Apr. 2024
Noun
Bottomless Bounty The secret to an endless harvest is a combination of careful selection and timing.
—Kristin Guy, Sunset Magazine, 16 Apr. 2024
That number significantly overshadows the harvest total from the 2023 youth weekend of 2,550 gobblers.
—Katie Hill, Outdoor Life, 10 Apr. 2024
For the creative class to point fingers at the large, breasty gentlemen adrift in tortilla-chip-laden pools of water is to gather a sour harvest of low-hanging fruit.
—Gary Shteyngart, The Atlantic, 4 Apr. 2024
Most cocoa beans are grown in West Africa, where extreme weather and changing climate patterns have upended crop harvests, which are forecast to fall short for the third year in a row.
—Alina Selyukh, NPR, 29 Mar. 2024
Farmers who grow fresh fruits and vegetables are often finding crop insurance prohibitively expensive — or even unavailable — as climate change escalates the likelihood of drought and floods capable of decimating harvests.
—Patrick Cooley, New York Times, 27 Mar. 2024
Travelers who stay in autumn can even help with the harvest.
—Katie Jackson, Robb Report, 12 Apr. 2024
Though there could be several reasons for this, we were disappointed as this meant our harvest was smaller.
—Rachel Ahrnsen, Better Homes & Gardens, 11 Apr. 2024
The amount of taxes owed was often linked to agriculture, with a certain percentage of a field’s harvest earmarked for state-run granaries or administrative storage centers.
—Kate McMahon, Smithsonian Magazine, 3 Apr. 2024
Verb
If your mom likes to sip, middle and stir ,then they’ll be obsessed with this cocktail garden set, which comes with everything needed to harvest fresh herbs and then mix up them into a spiced old-fashioned.
—Anna Tingley, Variety, 25 Apr. 2024
Taking over such work from Ukrainian personnel would help protect civilians and support Ukraine’s economic recovery, as farmers are now struggling to plant and harvest crops in fields full of mines and other unexploded munitions.
—Alex Crowther, Foreign Affairs, 22 Apr. 2024
The common antivenom used to treat rattlesnake bites, for example, is made by immunizing donor animals such as horses or sheep with snake venom and then harvesting the antibodies produced by these animals, according to the World Health Organization.
—Shaun Goodwin, Idaho Statesman, 19 Apr. 2024
That loophole means that companies can harvest vast troves of highly sensitive brain data, sometimes for an unspecified number of years, and share or sell the information to third parties.
—Jonathan Moens, New York Times, 17 Apr. 2024
Anyway, to obtain higher levels of CBG, manufacturers need to harvest the plants earlier in the growth cycle.
—All Cbd Naturals, Discover Magazine, 3 Apr. 2024
Hunters there can now harvest birds until sunset, rather than having to shut their hunt down at 1 p.m. Spring hunts are bearded-bird only, and the current bag limit of two birds remains in place.
—Katie Hill, Outdoor Life, 10 Apr. 2024
The next best thing to fresh are frozen peaches, as they are harvested and frozen during the peak of peach season.
—Patricia S York, Southern Living, 9 Apr. 2024
At a time when most other food is largely unavailable or prohibitively expensive, Gazans can harvest khobeza themselves and cook it by itself, or with a few other ingredients.
—Bilal Shbair, New York Times, 7 Apr. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'harvest.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Harvest.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/harvest. Accessed 29 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
harvest
1 of 2 noun
har·vest
ˈhär-vəst 
1
: the season when crops are gathered
2
: the gathering of a crop
3
: a ripe crop (as of grain or fruit)
also
: the quantity of a crop gathered in a single season
harvest
2 of 2 verb1
: to gather in a crop : reap
2
: to gather as if by harvesting
harvest timber
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