harbour
[hahr-ber]
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Usage note
See -or1.
harbor
[hahr-ber]
- 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.
- such a body of water having docks or port facilities.
- any place of shelter or refuge: The old inn was a harbor for tired travelers.
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- to give shelter to; offer refuge to: They harbored the refugees who streamed across the borders.
- to conceal; hide: to harbor fugitives.
- to keep or hold in the mind; maintain; entertain: to harbor suspicion.
- to house or contain.
- to shelter (a vessel), as in a harbor.
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- (of a vessel) to take shelter in a harbor.
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Also especially British, har·bour.
Origin of harbor
before 1150; Middle English herber(we), herberge, Old English herebeorg lodgings, quarters (here army + (ge)beorg refuge); cognate with German Herberge
Synonyms
See more synonyms for harbor on Thesaurus.com3. asylum, sanctuary, retreat. 4. protect, lodge.
Synonym study
1. 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. 6. See cherish.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for harbour
Contemporary Examples
They include “The Goldfish Pool at Chartwell” painted in 1932 and “The Harbour, Cannes,” painted circa 1933.
Churchill’s Secret Treasures for Sale: A British PM’s Life on the Auction BlockTom Teodorczuk
December 8, 2014
After the race the Duke and Duchess had a thrilling, bouncy ride across the harbour in an amphibious vehicle.
I took the last water taxi running from Eleuthera to Harbour Island.
Historical Examples
Harbour improvements have occupied much of the attention of Government.
Explorations in AustraliaJohn Forrest
If you go towards the harbour, you'll most likely encounter your brother.
But he was too generous to harbour it for more than an instant.
The Secret AgentJoseph Conrad
Our vessels were moored about the harbour, and we were all frozen in, as a matter of course.
Ned MyersJames Fenimore Cooper
The day after I reached the harbour, I was ordered on board the Scourge.
Ned MyersJames Fenimore Cooper
harbour
US harbor
- a sheltered port
- a place of refuge or safety
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- (tr) to give shelter toto harbour a criminal
- (tr) to maintain secretlyto harbour a grudge
- to shelter (a vessel) in a harbour or (of a vessel) to seek shelter
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Word Origin
Old English herebeorg, from here troop, army + beorg shelter; related to Old High German heriberga hostelry, Old Norse herbergi
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for harbour
harbor
v.
Old English hereborgian, cognate with Old Norse herbergja, Old High German heribergon, Middle Dutch herbergen; see harbor (n.). Figuratively, of thoughts, etc., from late 14c. Related: Harbored; harboring.
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harbor
n.
"lodging for ships," early 12c., probably from Old English herebeorg "lodgings, quarters," from here "army, host" (see harry) + beorg "refuge, shelter" (related to beorgan "save, preserve;" see bury); perhaps modeled on Old Norse herbergi "room, lodgings, quarters." Sense shifted in Middle English to "refuge, lodgings," then to "place of shelter for ships."
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper