1
as in shrew
a bad-tempered scolding woman
in fairy tales stepmothers are often portrayed as harpies who make the lives of their stepchildren miserable
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2
as in predator
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
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Recent Examples of harpy
This is her name for the seventh circle of hell from Dante’s Inferno, where the souls of those who’ve committed suicide become trees, and harpies peck at them for all eternity.
—
Sara Holdren, Vulture, 21 Nov. 2023
Karen is, of course, the generic name for the ubiquitous American harpy who, through the long summer of 2020, pitched fits about masks and sometimes about race, in public spaces.
—Virginia Heffernan, Wired, 18 Aug. 2020
Others portrayed her as a harpy, a notoriously disagreeable mythical beast that was half bird-of-prey, half woman.
—The Economist, 9 Nov. 2019
Those kinds of sentiments have multiplied on social media, which has exploded with memes in recent days calling the four everything from terrorists to harpies to cancer.
—Jeremy W. Peters, New York Times, 27 July 2019
See All Example Sentences for harpy
Sara Holdren, Vulture, 21 Nov. 2023
Karen is, of course, the generic name for the ubiquitous American harpy who, through the long summer of 2020, pitched fits about masks and sometimes about race, in public spaces.
—Virginia Heffernan, Wired, 18 Aug. 2020
Others portrayed her as a harpy, a notoriously disagreeable mythical beast that was half bird-of-prey, half woman.
—The Economist, 9 Nov. 2019
Those kinds of sentiments have multiplied on social media, which has exploded with memes in recent days calling the four everything from terrorists to harpies to cancer.
—Jeremy W. Peters, New York Times, 27 July 2019
See All Example Sentences for harpy
Recent Examples of Synonyms for harpy
Noun
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See page 8 to order a shrew for $29, plus shipping and handling.—
Jeff Wilson,
Outdoor Life,
11 Mar. 2026
-
Because for the most part, Caroline comes off as a rigid uptight shrew.—
Lisa DePaulo,
HollywoodReporter,
27 Feb. 2026
Noun
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The quarter-ton bears, apex predators who are revered by some Native American tribes but also feared for their attacks on livestock and sometimes humans, became locally extinct in California in 1924, the same year that the last California gray wolf was captured and killed.—
Sharon Bernstein,
Sacbee.com,
7 Apr. 2026
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After Warren Jeffs’ arrest, what are the confluence of events that allow for a predator like Sam Bateman to infiltrate this vulnerable community?—
Savannah Walsh,
Vanity Fair,
6 Apr. 2026
Noun
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While Hollywood vampires—especially those in the Twilight series—have a devoted fan base, real-life bloodsuckers aren’t so adored.—
Encyclopedia Britannica,
Encyclopedia Britannica,
2 Apr. 2026
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Not the red shirts, whose career life expectancy can be counted on a salt vampire's fingers, but the staff that turns up after the Enterprise has saved the day?—
Chris McMullen,
Space.com,
30 Mar. 2026
Noun
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On the other hand, in such a blighted landscape, AI could, perhaps, come not as a vulture to pick over the remains but a new life force to resuscitate them.—
Steven Zeitchik,
HollywoodReporter,
30 Mar. 2026
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The Yurok Tribe is leading the effort to bring the large, endangered vultures back to their historic homeland in Humboldt and Del Norte counties.—
Lila Seidman,
Los Angeles Times,
12 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Harpy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/harpy. Accessed 13 Apr. 2026.
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