keeper

American  

[kee-per] / ˈki pər /

noun

1. a person who guards or watches, as at a prison or gate.

   Synonyms:

   jailer, warden

2. a person who assumes responsibility for another's behavior.

   He refused to be his brother's keeper.

   Synonyms:

   guardian, custodian

3. a person who owns or operates a business (usually used in combination).

   a hotelkeeper.

4. a person who is responsible for the maintenance of something (often used in combination).

   a zookeeper; a groundskeeper.

5. a person charged with responsibility for the preservation and conservation of something valuable, as a curator or game warden.

6. a person who conforms to or abides by a requirement.

   a keeper of his word.

7. a fish that is of sufficient size to be caught and retained without violating the law.

8. Football. a play in which the quarterback retains the ball and runs with it, usually after faking a hand-off or pass.

9. something that serves to hold in place, retain, etc., as on a door lock.

10. something that lasts well, as a fruit.

11. guard ring.

12. an iron or steel bar placed across the poles of a permanent horseshoe magnet for preserving the strength of the magnet during storage.

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keeper British  

/ ˈkiːpə /

noun

1. a person in charge of animals, esp in a zoo

2. a person in charge of a museum, collection, or section of a museum

3. a person in charge of other people, such as a warder in a jail

4. See goalkeeper wicketkeeper gamekeeper

5. a person who keeps something

6. a device, such as a clip, for keeping something in place

7. a soft iron or steel bar placed across the poles of a permanent magnet to close the magnetic circuit when it is not in use

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Other Word Forms

• keeperless adjective
• keepership noun
• underkeeper noun

Etymology

Origin of keeper

First recorded in 1250–1300, keeper is from the Middle English word keper. See keep, -er ¹

Example Sentences

Forest's need for a keeper stems from a knee injury suffered by John Victor that is set to rule him out for the rest of the season.

From BBC

It’s an awful quandary because part of me knows that I’m a horrible secret keeper and have no business signing such a document, but another part of me is entirely intrigued.

From Literature

Some say it’s the ghost of Amelia Lester, the lighthouse keeper, who died in the fire that burned down the lighthouse in 1903.

From Literature

“I’m always curious about what the world was like before I was born. I’m known as the keeper of memories in our home.”

From Literature

He’s a preserver of life, a keeper of human memory.

From Salon

Related Words

• attendant
• caretaker
• curator
• custodian
• defender