harper
noun
a person who plays the harp.
Showing results for harper.
harper
1 American
[hahr-per]
/ ˈhɑr pər /
Harper
2
American
[hahr-per]
/ ˈhɑr pər /
noun
-
James, 1795–1869, and his brothers John, 1797–1875, (Joseph) Wesley, 1801–70, and Fletcher, 1806–77, U.S. printers and publishers.
-
a male or female given name.
Harper
British
/ ˈhɑːpə /
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of harper
before 900; Middle English; Old English hearpere. See harp, -er 1
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
When they became international stars in the 1970s, the group hired a harper named Derek Bell to play the old O’Carolan tunes, which as a result became part of every Irish band’s repertoire.
From Washington Post ● May 12, 2016
Mead has been spilled on the oak and the king's strong-thewed companions, none over 30, sprawl, snore or listen intently to the end of a long-drawn saga sung by Maccus, the harper.
From Time Magazine Archive
Only one man in the kingdom seemed cast down: the man who’d been Hrothgar’s harper before the blind man came to make his bid.
From "Grendel" by John Gardner
I could no longer pay the cook and the harper, and Lynesse grew wild when I spoke of pawning her jewels.
From "A Clash of Kings" by George R.R. Martin
The harper gave him back some answer, and Hrothgar spoke again.
From "Grendel" by John Gardner
Dave & Buster’s is ramping up its turnaround strategy, which focuses on getting back to its core business, Chief Executive Darin Harper said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 2026
Harper said the owners need not be concerned about a wave of players wanting to skip the Olympics.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 10, 2026
“Obviously, you’re not going to suspend Bobby Witt Jr. from the Royals for two weeks,” Harper told me.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 10, 2026
After the initial flip-flopping on whether the government would be able to exempt more prisoners, the mother of PC Harper told BBC Breakfast that the handling of the situation had been a "hash".
From BBC ● Aug. 30, 2026
Worried about losing their man, Harper and the others pursued him to the area of the terraces and Harper tackled him.
From "Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing" by Ted Conover
When gloved harpers set those overhead strings vibrating, the Kennedy Center architecture will be reflected in the tone.
From Washington Post ● May 12, 2016
"Your father—" "—will thank me, when I hand him his kingdom. I mean to do a deed that the harpers will sing of for a thousand years."
From "A Clash of Kings" by George R.R. Martin
In vain the heav’nly harpers tune the lyre, Rejoicing saints perform the three-fold part; In vain believers flash devotion’s fire, Or drag the holy harrows o’er thy heart!
From Awd Isaac, The Steeple Chase, and other Poems With a glossary of the Yorkshire Dialect by John Castillo
Of this we have a very beautiful representation, where the Evangelist saw a great multitude clothed in white, and following the Lamb of God; and “he heard the voice of harpers harping with their harps.”
From True Christianity by Johann Arndt
I wot that none of Alfred’s harpers hath such power of the harp.
From A Maid at King Alfred?s Court by Lucy Foster Madison
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
