crabber

1 of 2

noun (1)

crab·​ber ˈkra-bər 

plural crabbers

: someone or something that crabs: such as

a

: someone who fishes for crabs

The crabber sorts the harvest in his cramped boat.

—Tom Horton

Restrictions on crabbing are at best a holding action, the watermen say. "They can't regulate the crabs, so they regulate the crabber,"…

—Peter McGrath

b

: a boat engaged in crab fishing

Barcott said the vessel was used as a crabber and also as a tender for other summer fisheries.

—Hal Bernton

crabber

2 of 2

noun (2)

: a crabby or grouchy person : crab entry 3

The greatest crabber in history, … he spent his last decades living with his sister and being crabby.

—NPR

Example Sentences

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

For Bering Sea crabber Gretar Gudmundsson, December is a month for preparing his two boats for the winter harvest season. —Hal Bernton, Anchorage Daily News, 8 Dec. 2022

Under his photo in a school yearbook, McFadden declared plans to grow up to be a crabber. —Scott Dance, Baltimore Sun, 12 July 2022

Lethin operates the Aleutian Ballad, a former crabber, as a tour boat in the Southeast Alaska town of Ketchikan. —Anchorage Daily News, 4 Apr. 2022

As a crabber who fishes late into the season, when hypoxia peaks, he’s already lost income and struggled to keep a crew when there’s no crab to sell. —Julia Rosen, Smithsonian Magazine, 8 Mar. 2022

Word History

First Known Use

Noun (1)

1830, in the meaning defined above

Noun (2)

1909, in the meaning defined above