trapper

American  

[trap-er] / ˈtræp ər /

noun

trappers plural

1. a person or thing that traps.

2. a person whose business is the trapping of animals for their furs.

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trapper British  

/ ˈtræpə /

noun

1. a person who traps animals, esp for their furs or skins

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• trappers
  plural

Etymology

Origin of trapper

First recorded in 1615–25; trap ¹ + -er ¹

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

But back in 1831, he found himself rather hard up in L.A., and took work as a shipbuilder and trapper.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 22, 2024

Pitting a lovestruck fur trapper against a bucktoothed horde, this underground festival hit is a feverish fit of creative buffoonery — you haven’t experienced anything remotely like it.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 15, 2024

Carson’s life as a fur trapper, scout and courier was chronicled in dime novels and newspapers accounts that made him a legend in his own time.

From Seattle Times • Sep. 1, 2023

Mr. Fitzsimons, a recreational trapper, was also carrying a six-foot-long unstrung archery bow and a fur pelt draped across his neck.

From New York Times • Jul. 13, 2023

At one end a trapper skinned his raccoons and at the other Florence scraped dirt from a mound of sweet potatoes.

From "The Underground Railroad: A Novel" by Colson Whitehead