Sherpa
noun
a member of a people of Tibetan descent living in the Nepalese Himalayas, who often serve as porters on mountain-climbing expeditions.
Sherpa
American
[shur-puh]
/ ˈʃɜr pə /
noun
-
Sherpas,
plural
-
Sherpa
plural
-
a member of a people of Tibetan descent living in the Nepalese Himalayas, who often serve as porters on mountain-climbing expeditions.
-
a Tibetic language spoken by the Sherpa.
-
Sometimes sherpa an expert chosen by a chief executive to assist in preparations for a summit meeting.
Sherpa
1
British
/ ˈʃɜːpə /
noun
sherpa
2
British
/ ˈʃɜːpə /
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of Sherpa
First recorded in 1840–50; from Sherpa sharpa, equiavalent to shar “east” + pa “people” (referring to the origin of this people in eastern Tibet)
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 I first went to Nepal I fell in love with Sherpa culture and the yaks,” Higdon said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 8, 2026
"The main thing is to not put Sherpa lives at risk for a dead body."
From BBC ● Aug. 8, 2026
"This is an unthinkable loss for our mountaineering community and for the nation," Fur Gelje Sherpa, the President of Nepal's mountaineering association posted on social media.
From Barron's ● Aug. 2, 2026
The drones make a grueling job a little bit easier by delivering a hot breakfast in minutes to Sherpa climbers who set out in the middle of the night with just headlamps to guide them.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 26, 2026
Within minutes I was exhausted from the effort and had to sit down to rest, prompting a belly laugh from the Sherpa.
From "Into Thin Air" by Jon Krakauer
A fluffy, faux-wool sherpa underside sits next to the skin.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 23, 2026
Another Nepali sherpa, Kami Rita, holds the record for making the most number of Everest summits at 30, and is also currently on the mountain attempting to set a new record.
From BBC ● May 18, 2025
They have been, in some ways, a sherpa for us, to guide us through the evolution of humanity.
From Salon ● Apr. 23, 2024
Lyonne says she too benefited from a motherly Hollywood sherpa when Amy Poehler took her under her wing.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 24, 2024
“I’m just the lowly governor today. I’m the sherpa, as I like to say.”
From New York Times ● Jan. 22, 2024
Sherpas say bodies shrouded in iced-up climbing gear often weigh several times the average man and are frequently frozen into awkward positions, making bringing them down the challenging terrain even more treacherous.
From BBC ● Aug. 8, 2026
And then there are the Sherpas — Namgyal and his wife, Pasang, a former Buddhist nun, who hail from the Khumbu region of Nepal and live on the property with Higdon.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 8, 2026
Appeared in the January 26, 2026, print edition as 'Ro and Our New Health Sherpas'.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 25, 2026
He says he wants to show that Sherpas are as good as climbers from any other country.
From NewsForKids.net ● Oct. 24, 2024
As I made my way up from the river, the trail was clogged with trekkers, yakt trains, red-robed monks, and barefoot Sherpas straining beneath back-wrenching loads of firewood and kerosene and soda pop.
From "Into Thin Air" by Jon Krakauer
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.
