noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of trapper
Explanation
A trapper is a person who hunts animals using snares or traps. When Europeans first colonized North America, trappers often traded animal furs and skins with Native people. When you imagine a trapper, you may think of Davy Crockett and his famous coonskin cap, made from the skin, fur, and entire tail of a trapped raccoon. Today's trappers may dress differently, but they still hunt or capture animals using a variety of traps. Some trappers work removing garden pests like squirrels and groundhogs, while others hunt for food or fur.
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:
Instead, within approximately four hours, a licensed trapper arrived, safely captured the animal and removed it from the community.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 31, 2026
First, I had raccoons, which we extracted with help from a trapper.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026
The Miami-born comedian was featured prominently throughout the night, and even starred in three Spanish-laden skits alongside the “Monaco” Latin trapper.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 22, 2023
He says an old trapper there taught him the Indigenous method of making buckskin leather by soaking hides in animal brains and tanning them using wood smoke.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 14, 2023
His place was built the old way; it was a birchbark house, but it was quite warm in winter because he knew how to heap the sides with snow and he was an excellent trapper.
From "The Birchbark House" by Louise Erdrich
Unfortunately, this beautiful coat, which ranges in color from a reddish tan to a dark granite, also made them attractive prey for trappers.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 10, 2026
The researchers used molecular design to engineer over 500 candidate organic molecules they call "soft-hard zwitterionic trappers."
From Science Daily ● Nov. 22, 2024
The proposal cites people who watch, photograph or listen to wildlife as examples of potential new board members, joining hunters, fishermen and trappers.
From New York Times ● Mar. 25, 2024
Wolverine populations in southwestern Canada plummeted by more than 40% over the past two decades due to overharvesting by trappers, which could have effects across the U.S. border, scientists said.
From Washington Times ● Nov. 29, 2023
Talking with men in the Transient-House I heard of the fur trade up the river, how licensed trappers went up and downriver by sledge or iceboat through Tarrenpeth Forest almost to the Ice.
From "The Left Hand of Darkness" by Ursula K. Le Guin
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.
