groper

¹ American  

[groh-per] / ˈgroʊ pər /

noun

1. a person or thing that gropes.

2. Slang. a person who touches or fondles someone for sexual pleasure, especially without the person’s consent.

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groper ² American  

[groh-per] / ˈgroʊ pər /

noun

1. a large, purplish food fish, Achoerodus gouldii, inhabiting waters off Australia and New Zealand, characterized by an enormous gape.

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groper British  

/ ˈɡrəʊpə /

noun

1. Also called: garoupa. any large marine serranid fish of the genus Epinephelus and related genera, of warm and tropical seas

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Etymology

Origin of groper¹

First recorded in 1560–70; grope + -er ¹

Origin of groper²

Apparently alteration of grouper ¹, perhaps by association with grope

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

groper

Last month, Washington's top diplomat in London, Warren Stephens, said Miliband had been "wrong" in 2016 to call Mr Trump "a racist, misogynistic self-confessed groper" and added "hopefully his views have changed".

From BBC ● Aug. 5, 2026

Blueback is the name of the groper that is a symbol of the bay's wildlife that is endangered by predatory developers.

From Salon ● Mar. 2, 2023

Consider the western blue groper the St. Bernard of Australia’s southern coast, a heavy, friendly fish game to frolic with swimmers if fed the right treats.

From New York Times ● Mar. 2, 2023

Abby also befriends Blueback – a big-mouthed Australian fish known as a groper that lives in the water – and tries to protect him from danger.

From Salon ● Mar. 2, 2023

There were, he said, some five or six kinds, but they were all of the groper family.

From By Rock and Pool on an Austral Shore, and Other Stories by Louis Becke

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