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

So-called dark-port calls, when crews turn off the ship’s Automatic Identification System, mean vessels can enter and exit a harbor without leaving a trace.

From The Wall Street Journal

Justly or not, it’s tough to emerge on the other side of “Reality Check” without harboring the impression that the “Top Model” creator deserves a seat on a nitro-boosted express train to the hot place.

From Salon

But there was a notion that people could harbor a passion for other types of work, she added — and companies could exploit that passion.

From MarketWatch

The first mate told him the crew was scared and wanted to sail into a safe harbor for the night.

From Literature

Writers, actors, directors, and studio execs harbor animosity for Netflix, which disrupted their business models and shook up the power structure of the industry incumbents.

From Barron's

Related Words

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