1,400 new words in our dictionary! — Parasocial, glow-up, promposal & more
1,400 new words in our dictionary! — More

gaper

noun

Definition of gapernext
as in gawker

Related Words

Relevance

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of gaper This pairing from Wildhorn worked in perfect harmony to keep gaper-gap at bay and airflow going directly from cutouts at the top of the helmet vents into the goggles. — Joe Jackson, Outside Online, 18 Oct. 2022 The winner of this challenge is Gabe — his first Quickfire win of the season, for making poached gaper clams and butter clams in broth. — Vulture, 7 July 2021
Recent Examples of Synonyms for gaper
  1. rubberneck
  2. snooper
  3. spy
  4. peeper
  5. interloper
  6. intruder
  7. gazer
  8. buttinsky
Noun
  • Not exactly—there’s only so many people there to buy art, and plenty of others are there to rubberneck.
    — Nate Freeman, Vanity Fair, 15 May 2026
  • Many in the art world have been watching — though often to rubberneck.
    — Jacqui Palumbo, CNN Money, 23 Apr. 2026
Definition of rubberneck
Noun
  • Rather than being a delightful add-on, rechargeability in a poison-snooper could save lives in non-electrified remote locations, or in disaster zones where electricity is temporarily unavailable.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 17 Aug. 2026
  • The Department’s mistake is to worry about Sarah instead of Zoë, the professional snooper.
    — Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 29 Oct. 2025
Definition of snooper
Noun
  • The ruling leaves one of the country’s top tech firms branded with the kind of label once reserved for foreign companies suspected of helping spies.
    — Ian Duncan, Washington Post, 25 Sep. 2026
  • Her husky voice made Pugh, as an up-and-comer, seem wise beyond her years in breakout roles as a Machiavellian teenage bride in Lady Macbeth and an actor turned spy in The Little Drummer Girl.
    — Hillary Busis, Vanity Fair, 25 Sep. 2026
Definition of spy
Noun
  • Similar to how goggles protect your peepers from chlorine (and the burning feeling that can follow after opening your eyes in a swimming pool), goggles work very well to combat onion tears, Hale says.
    — Karla Walsh, Better Homes & Gardens, 7 May 2026
  • The House advanced the bill codifying the peeper’s status, House Bill 5534, this week by a vote of 136-0.
    — Theo Peck-Suzuki, Hartford Courant, 3 May 2026
Definition of peeper
Noun
  • But Bernardez eventually earned acceptance by establishing himself as someone who was committed to the neighborhood, not an interloper.
    — Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 18 Sep. 2026
  • Campuses are defending themselves against AI as an interloper while concurrently retooling themselves for the AI future.
    — Ian Bogost, The Atlantic, 17 Sep. 2026
Definition of interloper
Noun
  • After the event was disrupted by an armed intruder, the Administration and the association scheduled a July do-over, where Trump delivered a rambling speech indulging seemingly every tangent that sprang to mind, but his contempt remained apparent.
    — Jelani Cobb, New Yorker, 27 Sep. 2026
  • Further, there were no signs of any intruder leaving the home.
    — Eric Levenson, CNN Money, 26 Sep. 2026
Definition of intruder
Noun
  • Wrestlers like Garcia and Stewart have achieved what Morrison has set his sights on, but Morrison isn’t a star gazer.
    — Patrick Z. McGavin, Chicago Tribune, 19 Jan. 2026
Definition of gazer
Noun
  • Rather, the story is set in motion by Kevin O’Neill (Rick Holmes), a private-equity manager and arrogant buttinsky who takes an interest in Cara.
    — Jesse Green, New York Times, 6 June 2018
Definition of buttinsky

Browse Nearby Words

gaped
gaper
gapers
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Gaper.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/gaper. Accessed 29 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of argot

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Why do we 'bury the lede?'
See More

Popular

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
image of the words cracker fly and sale arranged in a triangle with the word fire in the middle
Triple Play Quiz Find the word that pairs with each of the three g...
See All