harbor

American  

[hahr-ber] / ˈhɑr bər /

especially British, harbour

noun

1. a part of a body of water along the shore deep enough for anchoring a ship and so situated with respect to coastal features, whether natural or artificial, as to provide protection from winds, waves, and currents.

2. such a body of water having docks or port facilities.

3. any place of shelter or refuge.

   The old inn was a harbor for tired travelers.

   Synonyms:

   retreat, sanctuary, asylum

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verb (used with object)

1. to give shelter to; offer refuge to.

   They harbored the refugees who streamed across the borders.

   Synonyms:

   lodge, protect

2. to conceal; hide.

   to harbor fugitives.

3. to keep or hold in the mind; maintain; entertain.

   to harbor suspicion.

4. to house or contain.

5. to shelter (a vessel), as in a harbor.

verb (used without object)

1. (of a vessel) to take shelter in a harbor.

Related Words

Harbor, haven, port indicate a shelter for ships. A harbor may be natural or artificially constructed or improved: a fine harbor on the eastern coast. A haven is usually a natural harbor that can be utilized by ships as a place of safety; the word is common in literary use: a haven in time of storm; a haven of refuge. A port is a harbor viewed especially in its commercial relations, though it is frequently applied in the meaning of harbor or haven also: a thriving port; any old port in a storm. See cherish.

Other Word Forms

• harborer noun
• harborless adjective
• harborous adjective
• unharbored adjective

Etymology

Origin of harbor

before 1150; Middle English herber ( we ), herberge, Old English herebeorg lodgings, quarters ( here army + ( ge ) beorg refuge); cognate with German Herberge

Example Sentences

Khamenei made no mention of a strategic endeavor that had brought the Islamic Republic to war: Its nuclear program, suspected for decades of harboring military dimensions.

From Los Angeles Times

Even when those dreams don’t quite hold, it continues to allow people to harbor hope for the next evolution.

From Los Angeles Times

In essence, seniors who thought they had found a safe harbor for their healthcare face the real possibility that they will no longer have adequate insurance.

From MarketWatch

The three Iranian ships scrambled to find safe harbor elsewhere.

From The Wall Street Journal

“Our countrymen, our fellow citizens, are not afraid of us. They don’t harbor any ideas that we intend to alter the government of the country or change the nature of this government in any way.”

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• dock
• inlet
• pier
• port
• road
• wharf