kemp

1
[ kemp ]

noun
  1. British Dialect.

    • a strong, brave warrior.

    • an athlete, especially a champion.

    • a professional fighter.

    • an impetuous or roguish young man.

  2. Scot. and North England. a contest, as between two athletes or two groups of workers, especially a reaping contest between farmworkers.

verb (used without object)
  1. Scot. and North England. to contest, fight, or strive, especially to strive in a reaping contest.

Origin of kemp

1
before 900; Middle English kempe,Old English cempa; cognate with Old Frisian kempa, kampa,Middle Dutch, Middle Low German kemp(e), Old High German chemp(i)o; ultimately <West Germanic, perhaps through Latin campiō;see champion

Words Nearby kemp

Other definitions for kemp (2 of 3)

kemp2
[ kemp ]

noun
  1. a short, coarse, brittle fiber, used chiefly in the manufacture of carpets.

Origin of kemp

2
1350–1400; Middle English kempe coarse (said of hair); akin to Old English cenep mustache, bristly object, Old Norse kampr mustache, cat's whiskers

Other words from kemp

  • kempy, adjective

Other definitions for Kemp (3 of 3)

Kemp
[ kemp ]

noun
  1. Jack F., 1935–2009, U.S. politician: congressman 1970–89.

  2. a male given name.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use kemp in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for kemp

kemp

/ (kɛmp) /


noun
  1. a coarse hair or strand of hair, esp one in a fleece that resists dyeing

Origin of kemp

1
C14: from Old Norse kampr beard, moustache

Derived forms of kemp

  • kempy, adjective

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012