kelp
Americannoun
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any large, brown, cold-water seaweed of the family Laminariaceae, used as food and in various manufacturing processes.
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a bed or mass of such seaweeds.
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the ash of these seaweeds.
verb (used without object)
noun
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any large brown seaweed, esp any in the order Laminariales
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the ash of such seaweed, used as a source of iodine and potash
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Any of various brown, often very large seaweeds that grow in colder ocean regions. Kelps are varieties of brown algae of the order Laminariales, with some species growing over 61 m (200 ft) long. Kelps are harvested as food (primarily in eastern Asia), as fertilizer, and for their sodium and potassium salts, used in industrial processes. Kelps are also a source of thickening agents and colloid stabilizers used in many commercial products.
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See more at brown alga
Etymology
Origin of kelp
1350–1400; apparently dialectal variant of Middle English culp < ?
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.
“I actually laughed, surely there was no way they were being serious,” Tchinnis recalled after being told part of his job would be to DJ for the kelp.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 18, 2026
Using copper to transmit the sound vibrations through the kelp soup, scientists played Huber’s recordings, which triggered something that caused the brew to act like the original.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 18, 2026
"In Strangford Lough, we have seagrass beds that support overwintering Brent Geese, rocky reefs with kelp forests and a range of species from starfish, anemones and crabs to seals and dolphins," he said.
From BBC • Feb. 28, 2026
In a recent expedition to Antarctica, new cases were discovered in Antarctic cormorants, kelp gulls, Adelie and gentoo penguins, and Antarctic fur seals, Neira told AFP.
From Barron's • Feb. 17, 2026
She looked again at the word she had written, then erased it with her own toes, stamped the sand firm, and tossed the stick into a pile of glistening kelp nearby.
From "Son" by Lois Lowry
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.
