kipper

¹ American  

[kip-er] / ˈkɪp ər /

noun

1. a fish, especially a herring, that has been cured by splitting, salting, drying, and smoking.

2. this method of curing fish.

3. a male salmon during or after the spawning season.

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verb (used with object)

kippers, present (3rd person singular) kippered, past participle, past kippering present participle

1. to cure (herring, salmon, etc.) by splitting, salting, drying and smoking.

kipper ² American  

[kip-er] / ˈkɪp ər /

noun

Australian Informal.

1. a young Aboriginal male, usually 14 to 16 years old, who has recently undergone his tribal initiation rite.

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kipper ¹ British  

/ ˈkɪpə /

noun

1. a fish, esp a herring, that has been cleaned, salted, and smoked

2. a male salmon during the spawning season

3. archaic an Englishman

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verb

1. (tr) to cure (a fish, esp a herring) by salting and smoking

kipper ² British  

/ ˈkɪpə /

noun

1. a native Australian youth who has completed an initiation rite

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kipper ³ British  

/ ˈkɪpə /

noun

1. informal an adult who cannot afford to move away from his or her parents' home

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Other Word Forms

Conjugated Forms

Present

• has kippered
  perfect 3rd person singular
• have kippered
  perfect
• have been kippering
  perfect progressive
• has been kippering
  perfect progressive 3rd person singular
• is kippering
  progressive 3rd person singular
• are kippering
  progressive
• am kippering
  progressive 1st person singular
• kippers
  singular 3rd person
• kippering
  participle

Past

• had kippered
  perfect
• had been kippering
  perfect progressive
• were kippering
  progressive plural
• was kippering
  progressive singular
• kippered
  simple
• kippered
  participle

Future

• will kipper
  simple
• will have kippered
  perfect
• will have been kippering
  perfect progressive
• will be kippering
  progressive

Etymology

Origin of kipper¹

before 1000; Middle English kypre, Old English cypera spawning salmon, apparently derivative of cyperen of copper, i.e., copper-colored

Origin of kipper²

First recorded in 1835–45, kipper is from the Wiradjuri word gibirr “man”

Example Sentences

He also bore a resemblance to an e-fit of a man with whom Ms Lamplugh was seen talking to on the day she went missing - thought to be the mysterious Mr Kipper.

From BBC • Nov. 15, 2024

Williams’ crew of producers, for example, include veteran R&B artist Kipper Jones, who worked on her earlier albums, and Chantry Johnson, who has also produced Lana Del Rey.

From Salon • May 2, 2024

Kipper later said that 15 Russia-launched drones were destroyed over the city.

From Reuters • Nov. 6, 2023

“We had the ability to execute when it mattered,” said guard Brandon Kipper, who was honored along with the entire senior class before the game.

From Washington Post • Nov. 26, 2022

The experience of Hamburg in the Kipper und Wipper Zeit, with its resultant establishment of the Hamburg Bank, has been already referred to.

From The History of Currency, 1252 to 1896 by Shaw, William Arthur

Related Words

• dry
• preserve
• smoke