reaper
Americannoun
-
a person who reaps or a machine for reaping
-
death
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of reaper
before 1000; Middle English reper, Old English ripere. See reap, -er 1
Explanation
The noun reaper refers to a person who harvests crops. If your part-time job involves harvesting corn by hand, then you're a reaper. Reaper can also refer to a piece of farm equipment used to harvest crops, especially grains. It's not a coincidence that reap looks a lot like the word ripe. When the crops are ripe — in Old English, "ready for reaping, fit for eating" — a reaper, either human or mechanical, can harvest them. Reap means "to cut grain with a hook or sickle." This might remind you of the Grim Reaper, the personification of death in art, movies, and stories, who is shown carrying a sickle and is said to be the harvester of souls.
Vocabulary lists containing reaper
Human Geography - Middle School
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
The Industrial Revolution - Introductory
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Human Geography - High School
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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:
One invented the mechanical reaper, another a machine for the mass production of horseshoes.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 3, 2026
The paintings depict implausible scenarios: What if the grim reaper slipped on a banana on his way to kill you?
From Los Angeles Times ● May 17, 2025
In 2003, he was responsible for a grim reaper, which was painted on the side of Thekla, a boat and nightclub venue in Bristol.
From BBC ● Aug. 9, 2024
Ms. Council is making jam with pineapples or cantaloupe instead of peaches, and customers will have to wait until next year for her peach reaper sauce, made with Georgia peaches and Carolina reaper peppers.
From New York Times ● Jul. 6, 2023
The last person I need to see right now is a know-it-all grim reaper.
From "Saints and Misfits" by S.K. Ali
Chanting and singing "free the Amazon", demonstrators in host city Belém have been carrying three giant coffins reading Oil, Coal and Gas flanked by two grim reapers.
From BBC ● Nov. 15, 2025
HH: That is so true, and so necessary for fundamental change, because we need new undertakers, new reapers.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 16, 2024
“Many parents are OK with children dressing as assassins, evil villains or grim reapers, yet they seldom take the costume choice to mean anything more than playful and fun.”
From Seattle Times ● Oct. 29, 2022
Memes and jokes featuring tombstones and grim reapers abounded.
From New York Times ● Jun. 15, 2022
Electricity, he said, could operate threshing machines, ploughs, harrows, rollers, and reapers and binders, besides supplying every stall with its own electric light, hot and cold water, and an electric heater.
From "Animal Farm: A Fairy Story" by George Orwell
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.
