carp
UK/ˈkɑːp//ˈkɑɹp/
carp noun: any of various freshwater fish of the family Cyprinidae.
Noun (1)
carp (plural carp or carps)
- Any of various freshwater fish of the family Cyprinidae.
- The Carp is a ſtately, a good, and a ſubtle fiſh, a fiſh that hath not (as it is ſaid) been long in England, but ſaid to be by one Mr. Maſcall (a Gentleman then living at Plumſted in Suſſex) brought into this Nation: […] Carps and Loches are obſerved to breed ſeveral months in one year, vvhich moſt...1653, Iz[aak] Wa[lton], chapter VIII, in The Compleat Angler or The Contemplative Man’s Recreation. Being a Discourse of Fish and Fishing, […], London: […] T. Maxey for Rich[ard] Marriot, […], →OCLC...
- Like scaly carp and feathered swan
To nature's world we do belong.1988, “Mayhem Maybe”, in Ian Anderson (music), 20 Years of Jethro Tull, performed by Jethro Tull
- The common carp, Cyprinus carpio.
Verb
carp (third-person singular simple present carps, present participle carping, simple past and past participle carped)
- To criticize or complain about a fault, especially for frivolous or petty reasons; to cavil.
- Here agayne Seruetto carpeth, yͭ God did beare the perſon of an Angel. As thoughe the Prophete did not confirme that whiche Moſes had ſaied: why doeſt thou aſke me of my name?1561 May 16 (Gregorian calendar), Ihon Caluin [i.e., John Calvin], “That there is Taught in the Scriptures One Essence of God from the Very Creation, which Essence Conteineth in It Thre Persons”, in...
- Enuie vvhy carpeſt thou my time is ſpent ſo ill, / And termſt my vvorkes fruites of an idle quill.c. 1580s (date written), C[hristoper] M[arlowe], “Elegia. 15. Ad inuidos, qaod fama poetarum sit perennis.”, in Ouids Elegies: Three Bookes. […], Middlebourgh [i.e., London: […] Thomas Cotes?]...
- To speak, to talk; also, to talk about a subject in speech or writing.
- To talk much but to little purpose; to chatter, to prattle.
- And some of them barke, / Clatter and carpe / Of that heresy arte / Called Wicleuista, / The deuelysshe dogmatista; […]1521–1522, John Skelton, “Here after Followeth a Litel Boke Called Colyn Cloute, […]”, in Alexander Dyce, editor, The Poetical Works of John Skelton: […], volume I, London: Thomas Rodd, […]...
- And therwithall came curiouſneſſe and carped out of frame. / The audience laught to heare the ſtrife as they beheld the ſame.1557 August 10 (Gregorian calendar), [Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey; Thomas Wyatt; et al.], “A Praise of Maistresse R.”, in Songes and Sonettes, London: […] Richard Tottel, →OCLC, folio 84, verso
- Synonyms:
- blabber, prate, babble, bat the breeze, blab, blather, chat, chatter, chew the fat, chew the rag
- Of a bird: to sing; of a person (such as a minstrel): to sing or recite.
- Hys hart is to hy to haue any hap; / But for in his gamut carp that he can, / Lo, Jak wold be a jentylman!a. 1530 (date written), John Skelton, “Against a Comely Coystrowne, that Curyowsly Chawntyd, and Curryshly Cowntred, […]”, in Alexander Dyce, editor, The Poetical Works of John Skelton: […], volume...
- Then aye he harped, and aye he carped, / Till a' the Lordlings footed the floor; / But an' the music was sae sweet, / The groom had nae mind o' the stable door.1802, “The Lochmaben Harper”, in Walter Scott, editor, Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border: […], volume I, Kelso, Roxburghshire: […] James Ballantyne, for T[homas] Cadell Jun. and W[illiam] Davies...
- To say or tell (something).
- To find fault with (someone or something); to censure, to criticize.
- Albeit I doe knovve they [the speeches] vvill lie open to the cenſure of the youth of our time, vvho for the moſt part, are ſo over-gulled vvith ſelf-liking, that they are more then giddy in admiring themſelves, and carping vvhatſoever hath beene done or ſaide heeretofore, Nevertheleſſe I hope that...1605, M. N. [pseudonym; William Camden], “Grave Speeches, and Wittie Apothegmes of Woorthie Personages of This Realme in Former Times”, in Remaines of a Greater Worke, Concerning Britaine, […]...
- [W]hen I ſpoke, / My honeſt homely vvords vvere carp'd, and cenſur'd, / For vvant of Courtly ſtile: […]1690, [John] Dryden, Don Sebastian, King of Portugal: […], London: […] Jo. Hindmarsh, […], →OCLC, Act IV, scene i, page 104
- Synonyms:
- reprehend, reprove, take exception
Noun (2)
carp (plural carps)
Proper noun (1) capitalized: CARP
CARP
- Initialism of Collegiate Association for the Research of Principles, a Unificationist organization.
Proper noun (2) capitalized: Carp
Carp (plural Carps)
- A surname.
carp meaning in Hindi, Tamil, Urdu and Bengali
carp in Hindi
- कार्प, कारप
carp in Tamil
- any of various freshwater fish of the family Cyprinidae
- சேல் cēl, கெண்டை keṇṭai, கெண்டைமீன் keṇṭaimīṉ
carp in Urdu
- کارپ
carp in Bengali
- কার্প
More languagesFewer languages
- carp in Malayalam
- കാർപ്
- carp in Gujarati
- કાર્પ
- carp in Odia
- କାର୍ପ, କାର୍ପ୍
- carp in Nepali
- कार्प
- carp in Tagalog
- karpa
- carp in Arabic
- شَبُّوط šabbūṭ
- carp in Malay
- ikan mas, kap
- carp in Indonesian
- ikan mas, karper
- carp in Persian
- کپور kapur
- carp in Thai
- ไน nai
- carp in Vietnamese
- cá chép
Examples of carp in a sentence
- The Carp is a ſtately, a good, and a ſubtle fiſh, a fiſh that hath not (as it is ſaid) been long in England, but ſaid to be by one Mr.1653, Iz[aak] Wa[lton], chapter VIII, in The Compleat Angler or The Contemplative Man’s Recreation. Being a Discourse of Fish and Fishing...
- Illinois took the initiative in renaming the Asian carp given the state’s position as a sort of “last stand” against the carp entering the Great Lakes.2022 June 22, Patti Wetli, “Introducing Copi, the Fish Formerly Known as Asian Carp”, in WTTW:
- [W]ith your good countenance protect against the malice of euill mouthes, vvhich are alvvaies vvide open to carpe at and miſconstrue my ſimple meaning.1592 January 6 (date written; Gregorian calendar), Ed. Spencer [i.e., Edmund Spenser], “To the Right Worthy and Noble Knight Sir Walter...
- Is it not a pleaſant entertainment to us, to be carping and cavelling at any Body vve meet, at any thing vve ſee done?a. 1678 (date written), Isaac Barrow, “The Eighth Sermon. S. Matth[ew] 7. 1.”, in Several Sermons against Evil-Speaking, London: […]...
Synonyms of carp
30 more synonymsFewer synonyms
Forms of carp
| Noun | |
|---|---|
| plural | carp |
| plural | carps |
| Verb | |
| third-person singular present | carps |
| present participle | carping |
| past participle | carped |
| past | carped |
| second-person singular present (archaic) | carpest |
| second-person singular past (archaic) | carpedst |
| third-person singular present (archaic) | carpeth |
| Proper noun | |
| plural | Carps |
Origin of carp
From Late Middle English carpe (“the common carp (Cyprinus carpio)”), from Old French carpe, from Late Latin carpa, possibly from Proto-West Germanic *karpo (possibly due to the introduction from the fish from the Danube into England in the 14th century; whence Middle Low German karpe and Old High German charpho, karpho); further etymology unknown.
The verb is derived from Middle English carpen, karpe (“to chat, converse, talk; to chatter, gossip; to ask; to cry out, wail; to find fault, carp; to relate, tell; to recite; to sing”), and then partly: * from Old Norse karpa (“to boast, brag; to dispute, quarrel”), further etymology unknown; and * from, or influenced by, Latin carpere, the present active infinitive of carpō (“to harvest, pick, pluck; to criticize, revile, slander, carp at”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *kerp- (“to harvest, pluck”). The noun is derived from the verb. (Middle English carp, karp (“conversation, discourse, talking; spoken or written message or statement; meaning; news; poem; song; story”), from Old Norse karp (“bragging”), did not survive into modern English.)
* As a German, Polish, and Jewish surname, spelling variant of Karp. * As an English surname, from the noun carp (“kind of fish”). * Also as an English surname, from the verb carp (“to complain”).
Words formed from carp
- Asian carp
- bighead carp
- black carp
- carp bream
- carpless
- carplike
- carp louse
- carp pox
- carpsucker
- common carp
- crucian carp
- flying carp
- German carp
- grass carp
- holy carp
- Indian carp
- invasive carp
- Japanese crucian carp
- koi
- koi carp
- leather carp
- mirror carp
- mud carp
- Prussian carp
- river carp
- sabre carp
- silver carp
- toothcarp
- carper
- carping
Phrases with carp
Words that rhyme with carp
Questions about carp
- What does carp mean?
- Carp means any of various freshwater fish of the family Cyprinidae.
- What is carp in Hindi?
- Carp in Hindi is कार्प, कारप. See Carp meaning in Hindi.
- How do you use carp in a sentence?
- The Carp is a ſtately, a good, and a ſubtle fiſh, a fiſh that hath not (as it is ſaid) been long in England, but ſaid to be by one Mr.
- What part of speech is carp?
- Carp can be a noun, a verb or a proper noun.
- How do you pronounce carp?
- Carp is pronounced /ˈkɑːp/ (UK).
- What is the plural of carp?
- The plural of carp is carp.
Words near carp in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: carp (page history and authors); CARP (page history and authors); Carp (page history and authors); carp (Hindi, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); carp (Urdu, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); carp (Bengali, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); carp (Malayalam, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); carp (Gujarati, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); carp (Odia, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); carp (Nepali, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
Last updated:
Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: En-us-carp.ogg.
Cite this entry: “carp.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/carp. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.