kelp

noun

ˈkelp 

plural kelps or kelp

1

a

: any of various large marine brown algae that are large seaweeds (order Laminariales) growing in cool waters

Only canopy-forming kelp are visible on the sea surface.

—Glenn Scherer

Kelps grow fast, drawing on all the minerals and vitamins and nutrients they can from the watershed and the sun.

—Zachariah Bryan

… thickets of kelp forming submarine forests in the bay.

—Jeff Phillips

see also bladder kelp, bull kelp, giant kelp

b

: a mass or growth of large seaweeds

The kelp near the outer islands teems with marine plants and animals in far greater abundance than it does closer to the coast …

—John L. Stein

2

a

: a blade (see blade entry 1 sense 2e) of kelp that is usually dried and used as food (as in sushi or soups)

b

: a dietary supplement containing processed kelp

c

: the ashes of seaweed used formerly especially as a source of iodine

Examples of kelp in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

When urchins are kept in check, kelp forests flourish — sequestering carbon and providing food and shelter for fish, shellfish and other life. —Lila Seidman, Los Angeles Times, 11 Apr. 2024

Largely regarded as one of the best in the U.S., this aquarium is celebrated for its living kelp forest, home to wildlife like red octopuses and leopard sharks. —Travel + Leisure Editors, Travel + Leisure, 1 Apr. 2024

North, who died in 2002, was noted for his studies of California’s coastal kelp forests. —Phil Diehl, San Diego Union-Tribune, 23 Mar. 2024

Marine sanctuaries help to protect underwater resources, like rocky reefs, kelp forests, deep-sea canyons and archaeological sites. —Caitlin Looby, Journal Sentinel, 21 Mar. 2024

Twenty years ago former cod fisherman Bren Smith shifted his business to kelp farming after cod stocks crashed, decimating jobs along with it. —Doug Sundheim, Forbes, 30 Mar. 2024

The last panel features a leopard shark found along our beaches like La Jolla, surrounded by kelp, and two California least terns flying above that—an endangered species that nests in our Mission Bay/Pacific Beach areas. —Lisa Deaderick, San Diego Union-Tribune, 2 Mar. 2024

Each formula contains materials such as fish bone meal, feather meal, kelp meal, alfalfa meal and rock phosphate. —Maureen Gilmer, Charlotte Observer, 1 Feb. 2024

Prior to recent decades, it wasn't known that sea otters live amid the salt marshes, because they're typically seen in kelp forests farther out to sea, Hughes said. —Julia Jacobo, ABC News, 31 Jan. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English culp

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing kelp

• giant bladder kelp
• bull kelp
• kelp bass
• giant kelp
• bladder kelp

Kids Definition

kelp

noun

ˈkelp 

: any of various large brown seaweeds

also : a mass of these

Medical Definition

kelp

noun

ˈkelp 

1

: any of various large marine brown algae that are large seaweeds (order Laminariales) growing in cool waters

2

a

: a dietary supplement containing processed kelp

b

: the ashes of seaweed used formerly especially as a source of iodine