crop

noun \ ˈkräp \

|Updated on: 16 Jun 2018

Definition of crop

1 : a pouched enlargement of the esophagus of many birds that serves as a receptacle for food and for its preliminary maceration; also : an enlargement of the digestive tract of another animal (such as an insect)

2 a (1) : a plant or animal or plant or animal product that can be grown and harvested extensively for profit or subsistence

an apple crop

a crop of wool

(2) : the total yearly production from a specified area

b : the product or yield of something formed together

the ice crop

c : a batch or lot of something produced during a particular cycle

the current crop of films

d : collection

a crop of lies

3 : the stock or handle of a whip; also : a riding whip with a short straight stock and a loop

[²crop]

a : the part of the chine of a quadruped (such as a domestic cow) lying immediately behind the withers —usually used in plural — see cow illustration

b : an earmark on an animal; especially : one made by a straight cut squarely removing the upper part of the ear

c : a close cut of the hair

He has a thick crop of hair.

See crop defined for English-language learners

See crop defined for kids

Examples of crop in a Sentence

Tobacco is their main crop.
They sprayed the crops with a pesticide.
The teachers got ready for a new crop of students.
a new crop of horror movies

Recent Examples of crop from the Web

But head coach Ed Cooley put together a stellar crop of recruits, including a pair of top-50 guards in David Duke and A.J. Reeves.

— ben steele, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Big East men's basketball off-season stock watch: Marquette up, Villanova down," 8 June 2018
Ronaldo leads a Portugal side that won Euro 2016, featuring a very talented and confident crop of players to complement his incredible scoring prowess.

— juan pimiento, chicagotribune.com, "Russia 2018, Messi's and Ronaldo's last shot at World Cup glory," 8 June 2018
Even dealing with a new crop of defensive ends coming in behind him.

— paul dehner jr., Cincinnati.com, "Jordan Willis finds comfort, opportunity in second season with Cincinnati Bengals," 7 June 2018
Each team got a crop of great young players in the draft.

— jonathan jones, SI.com, "Predicting Every NFL Team’s 2018 Season Record," 7 June 2018
Rainwater is lurking in every container around our homes and yards, and standing water creates perfect conditions for a bumper crop of mosquitoes.

— helena oliviero, ajc, "The rain may be over, but Lake Lanier remains unsafe for swimmers," 5 June 2018
This California concert will usher in summer with a crop of exuberant pop stars including Shawn Mendes, Ariana Grande, 5 Seconds of Summer, NF, and Miguel.

— andrew r. chow, New York Times, "What’s on TV Sunday: ‘Pose’ and ‘Succession’," 3 June 2018
The 2016 election produced a new crop of Democratic activists in California who stayed engaged over the past two years through groups like Indivisible.

— maeve reston, CNN, "How a surge of progressive energy could backfire on Democrats in California," 31 May 2018
Cleveland essentially remade its roster midseason, trading away promising complimentary pieces like Thomas for a new crop of young talent and middling veterans.

— al saracevic, San Francisco Chronicle, "LeBron James: One man stands in the Warriors’ way," 30 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'crop.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.