1
as in shrews
a bad-tempered scolding woman
in fairy tales stepmothers are often portrayed as harpies who make the lives of their stepchildren miserable
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in predators
a person who habitually preys upon others
having just started to make it really big in the music business, he found himself surrounded by a flock of harpies greedy for a piece of the action
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of harpies
And because harpies rely on large emergent trees for nesting and an extensive, continuous canopy for hunting, even partial deforestation will severely disrupt their ability to breed and forage.
—
Scott Travers,
Forbes.com,
17 May 2026
In the right-wing imagination, these women are acting like harpies — an epithet often seen online — when they’re supposed to be helpmeets.
—
Michelle Goldberg,
Mercury News,
20 Jan. 2026
Think a front desk hewn from Dionysos marble and sconces in the shape of harpies.
—
Sam Cochran,
Architectural Digest,
11 Aug. 2025
Scott Travers,
Forbes.com,
17 May 2026
In the right-wing imagination, these women are acting like harpies — an epithet often seen online — when they’re supposed to be helpmeets.
—
Michelle Goldberg,
Mercury News,
20 Jan. 2026
Think a front desk hewn from Dionysos marble and sconces in the shape of harpies.
—
Sam Cochran,
Architectural Digest,
11 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for harpies
Noun
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These are important tools used for both feeding and building their dens and digging for other menu items such as mice, gophers, voles and shrews.
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The tiny bodies of weasels, shrews and bats burn energy so fast that skipping even one meal can mean starvation.
Noun
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At the same time, there when sharks and people share shallow coastal zones, clarity of the water matters for how both predators and humans perceive each other.
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Baby monsters The researchers’ study focused mainly on embolomers, an extinct group of large predators that lived roughly 300 million years ago.
Noun
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Hugh Jackman has fought mutants, slayed vampires and gone toe-to-toe dancing with Zac Efron.
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Southern Ontario is, famously, where the vampires hang out.
Noun
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There are pink flamingos, then, but also many vultures circling the southern Adriatic.
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Moreover, the official mascots succeed in spotting various varmints — foxes and possums, to be specific, but thankfully, no vultures.
Cite this Entry
“Harpies.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/harpies. Accessed 27 Jun. 2026.
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