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

"And I think we have an understanding keeper in Kepa - he's played all the competition and I think it would have been very, very unfair for him and for the team to do something different."

From BBC

The former Leicester City keeper is out of contract at the end of the season and faces up to a year of recovery.

From BBC

He has been on Bayern's bench in their past two matches with fellow teenage keeper Leon Klanac, 19, also out with a thigh injury.

From BBC

It was judged on a 3:2 vote that Ramsey's "left foot appears to slip as he goes past the keeper" and that it "wasn't an attempt to deceive the referee".

From BBC

Angel City keeper Angelina Anderson needed to make just two saves to record the clean sheet.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• attendant
• caretaker
• curator
• custodian
• defender