Definition of carp
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Examples of carp in a Sentence
He's always carping about his boss.
He's tired of always being carped at by his critics.
Did You Know?
You might guess that the verb carp word is a descendant of the noun referring to a type of fish. That's a reasonable speculation, but the verb actually preceded the fish's name into the English language by approximately a century. Its origins are Scandinavian: it may be related to the Icelandic verb karpa, meaning "to dispute" or "to wrangle," and beyond that perhaps to Old Norse karp, meaning "boasting" or "arrogance." In the early 20th century, English speakers also coined a second noun carp (meaning "complaint") from this verb.
Origin and Etymology of carp
Middle English, of Scandinavian origin; akin to Icelandic karpa to dispute
NEW! Time Traveler
First Known Use: 15th century
in the meaning defined above
See Words from the same yearcarp Synonyms
Synonyms
beef, bellyache, bleat, caterwaul, complain, crab, croak, fuss, gripe, grouch, grouse, growl, grumble, grump, holler, inveigh, kick, moan, murmur, mutter, nag, scream, squawk, squeal, wail, whimper, whine, yammer, yawp (or yaup), yowl;
Related Words
Phrases
kick up a fuss;
First Known Use of carp
15th century
Definition of carp
plural carp
or carps
1
: a large variable Asian soft-finned freshwater cyprinid fish (Cyprinus carpio) of sluggish waters that is often raised for food and has been widely introduced into U.S. waters;
also
: any of various related cyprinid fishes (such as the grass carp)
2
: a fish (such as the European sea bream) resembling a carp
Origin and Etymology of carp
Middle English carpe, from Medieval French, from Late Latin carpa, probably of Germanic origin; akin to Old High German karpfo carp
NEW! Time Traveler
First Known Use: 15th century
in the meaning defined at sense 1
See Words from the same yearOrigin and Etymology of carp-
French & New Latin, from Greek karp-, karpo-, from karpos — more at harvest
Origin and Etymology of -carp
New Latin -carpium, from Greek -karpion, from karpos
CARP Defined for English Language Learners
CARP Defined for Kids
Definition of carp for Students
carped;
carping
: to complain in an annoying way
Definition of carp for Students
: a freshwater fish that lives a long time and is often used for food
Learn More about carp
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See words that rhyme with carp Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for carp Spanish Central: Translation of carp Nglish: Translation of carp for Spanish speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about carp
Seen and Heard
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