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Synonyms for harpy

Grammar : Noun
Spell : hahr-pee
Phonetic Transcription : ˈhɑr pi


Définition of harpy

Origin :
  • late 14c., from Old French harpie (14c.), from Greek Harpyia (plural), literally "snatchers," probably related to harpazein "to snatch" (see rapid). Metaphoric extension to "greedy person" is c.1400.
  • In Homer they are merely personified storm winds, who were believed to have carried off any person that had suddenly disappeared. In Hesiod they are fair-haired and winged maidens who surpass the winds in swiftness, and are called Aello and Ocypete; but in later writers they are represented as disgusting monsters, with heads like maidens, faces pale with hunger, and claws like those of birds. The harpies ministered to the gods as the executors of vengeance. ["American Cyclopædia," 1874]
  • noun a shrewish woman
  • noun a greedy person
Example sentences :
  • Madame Beattie was a familiar name to them, but they had never heard she was a harpy.
  • Extract from : « The Prisoner » by Alice Brown
  • It was also the day of the man behind the bar, of the gambler, of the harpy.
  • Extract from : « The Trail of '98 » by Robert W. Service
  • “Harpy it might have been, but happy it was not,” he answered with a groan.
  • Extract from : « The Three Commanders » by W.H.G. Kingston
  • Their hands, when they possessed them, were like harpy claws.
  • Extract from : « The House of Pride » by Jack London
  • One is bound to be courteous to a lady, even though that lady be a harpy.
  • Extract from : « The Struggles of Brown, Jones, and Robinson » by Anthony Trollope
  • Law is a bottomless pit; it is a cormorant, a harpy, that devours everything.
  • Extract from : « The History of John Bull » by John Arbuthnot
  • Well, Ned,” said Jack, “do you wish yourself on board the Harpy again?
  • Extract from : « Mr. Midshipman Easy » by Captain Frederick Marryat
  • “The Harpy is standing in with a breeze from the offing,” said Gascoigne to Easy.
  • Extract from : « Mr. Midshipman Easy » by Captain Frederick Marryat
  • The yards were squared, and the Harpy soon had steerage way.
  • Extract from : « Mr. Midshipman Easy » by Captain Frederick Marryat
  • Colney had escaped his harpy, and Victor could be called a millionaire and more.
  • Extract from : « One of Our Conquerors, Complete » by George Meredith

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Based on : Thesaurus.com - Gutenberg.org - Dictionary.com - Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019