carp

a large freshwater cyprinid fish, Cyprinus carpio, native to Asia but widely introduced in tropical and temperate waters: an important food fish in many countries.

any of various other fishes of the family Cyprinidae.

Origin:
1350–1400; Middle English carpe < Middle French < Middle Dutch or Middle Low German karpe; cognate with Old High German karpfo

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a person who seeks to overturn by violence all constituted forms and institutions of society and government, with no purpose of establishing any other system of order in the place of that destroyed.

to flow out, issue, or proceed, as from a source or origin; come forth; originate.

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a combining form occurring in compounds that denote a part of a fruit or fruiting body: endocarp.

Origin:
< Neo-Latin -carpium < Greek -karpion, derivative of karpós fruit

carpentry.

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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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World English Dictionary

carp¹ (kɑːp)

—n , pl carp, carps
1.	a freshwater teleost food fish, Cyprinus carpio, having a body covered with cycloid scales, a naked head, one long dorsal fin, and two barbels on each side of the mouth: family Cyprinidae
2.	any other fish of the family Cyprinidae; a cyprinid

Related: cyprinid, cyprinoid

[C14: from Old French carpe, of Germanic origin; compare Old High German karpfo, Old Norse karfi]

carp² (kɑːp)

—vb (often foll by at)
	to complain or find fault; nag pettily

[C13: from Old Norse karpa to boast; related to Latin carpere to pluck]

'carper²

—n

-carp

—*n combining form*
	(in botany) fruit or a reproductive structure that develops into a particular part of the fruit: epicarp

[from New Latin -carpium, from Greek -karpion, from karpos fruit]

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Etymonline

Word Origin & History

carp

"fish," 1393, from O.Fr. carpe, from V.L. carpa (c.575), possibly from Gothic *karpa. A Danube fish (hence the E.Gmc. origin of its name), introduced in Eng. ponds 14c.

carp

"complain," c.1240, from O.N. karpa "to brag," of unknown origin; meaning turned toward "find fault," probably by infl. of L. carpere "to slander, revile," lit. "to pluck" (see harvest).

American Heritage

Abbreviations & Acronyms

carp.

carpenter
carpentry

Example sentences

The critters-a profusion of different varieties and sizes from tiny turtle to

giant carp-must make do with close quarters.

With diligence and perseverance anything is possible, for carp as well as for

collectors.

The feeding cycle of the paddlefish is slower than that of the carp.

Praying mantises on the tile roof by the carp pond and garden at this night's

ryokan.

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goldfish gripe nudge peck roach rudd

Matching Quote

"It is easy to carp at colleges, and the college, if he will wait for it, will have its own turn. Genius exists there also, but will not answer a call of a committee of the House of Commons. It is rare, precious, eccentric, and darkling."

-Ralph Waldo Emerson