carped; carping; carps
: to find fault or complain querulously
carper
noun
plural carp or carps
1
: a large variable Asian soft-finned freshwater cyprinid fish (Cyprinus carpio) of sluggish waters that is often raised for food and has been widely introduced into U.S. waters
also
: any of various related cyprinid fishes (such as the grass carp)
2
: a fish (such as the European sea bream) resembling a carp
: part of a fruit
mesocarp
: fruit
schizocarp
Synonyms
Examples of carp in a Sentence
Verb
He's always carping about his boss.
He's tired of always being carped at by his critics.
Recent Examples on the Web
Oliver Bateman, Washington Examiner, 12 Jan. 2024
But those critics aren’t carping so loudly any more.
—April Roach, Fortune Europe, 21 Nov. 2023
But bitten by the carp bug 13 years ago, Moore decided to roll back his client list, grow his hair long, and chase carp the world over.
—Kirk Deeter, Field & Stream, 5 Dec. 2020
Critics carp that the United States has overinvested in India—that the favors accorded to New Delhi have not been worth the return.
—Robert D. Blackwill, Foreign Affairs, 12 Aug. 2019
The state’s Republicans have carped about the cost of these policies.
—Grace Segers, The New Republic, 3 July 2023
But with the Biden administration now taking a more active interest in regulating the industry, crypto fans are carping about a conspiracy bent on taking the industry down.
—Jacob Silverman, The New Republic, 12 May 2023
While some might carp that the room décor is a little dated, the value was clear to hundreds of guests.
—Michael Goldstein, Forbes, 9 Apr. 2022
Purists will understandably carp about this, but Warners now owns those titles and thus claims them as their own.
—Jon Burlingame, Variety, 7 Apr. 2023
Sage Marshall, Field & Stream, 3 Apr. 2024
There’s also a historic hacienda built by the López presidential dynasty, a free natural history museum and a miniature Japanese garden whose pond is prowled by carp and caimans.
—Laurence Blair, New York Times, 7 Mar. 2024
This tiny fish in the minnow and carp family can produce sounds louder than an airplane taking off as perceived by human ears at a distance of 328 feet, according to a study published February 26 in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).
—Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 28 Feb. 2024
Koi carp are bred to create their distinctive markings.
—David Morgan, CBS News, 15 Mar. 2024
Koi’s Garden The action on this dial involves a pair of three-dimensional carp fish swimming in a stream surrounded by colorful pebbles.
—Carol Besler, Robb Report, 12 Mar. 2024
Usually that fish is a catfish, though turtles and rough fish like carp may also be caught by hand in some states.
—Natalie Krebs, Outdoor Life, 15 Nov. 2023
When not complaining about his unrecognized genius, Martin carps about his wife (Jena Malone).
—Lovia Gyarkye, The Hollywood Reporter, 25 Jan. 2024
Still, other species such as Asian carp and zebra mussels are doing big damage, especially in our waterways.
—Sarah Bowman, The Indianapolis Star, 27 Feb. 2024
Verb
Those small men carping about their indisputable successes, by contrast, are losers — and their stories are soon lost in the sands of time.
—Oliver Bateman, Washington Examiner, 12 Jan. 2024
But those critics aren’t carping so loudly any more.
—April Roach, Fortune Europe, 21 Nov. 2023
But bitten by the carp bug 13 years ago, Moore decided to roll back his client list, grow his hair long, and chase carp the world over.
—Kirk Deeter, Field & Stream, 5 Dec. 2020
Critics carp that the United States has overinvested in India—that the favors accorded to New Delhi have not been worth the return.
—Robert D. Blackwill, Foreign Affairs, 12 Aug. 2019
The state’s Republicans have carped about the cost of these policies.
—Grace Segers, The New Republic, 3 July 2023
But with the Biden administration now taking a more active interest in regulating the industry, crypto fans are carping about a conspiracy bent on taking the industry down.
—Jacob Silverman, The New Republic, 12 May 2023
While some might carp that the room décor is a little dated, the value was clear to hundreds of guests.
—Michael Goldstein, Forbes, 9 Apr. 2022
Purists will understandably carp about this, but Warners now owns those titles and thus claims them as their own.
—Jon Burlingame, Variety, 7 Apr. 2023
Noun
In Iowa, the majority of the deceased fish were minnows, shiners, dace, or chub, though thousands of channel catfish and at least 264 flatheads were killed, too, along with carp and sunfish.
—Sage Marshall, Field & Stream, 3 Apr. 2024
There’s also a historic hacienda built by the López presidential dynasty, a free natural history museum and a miniature Japanese garden whose pond is prowled by carp and caimans.
—Laurence Blair, New York Times, 7 Mar. 2024
This tiny fish in the minnow and carp family can produce sounds louder than an airplane taking off as perceived by human ears at a distance of 328 feet, according to a study published February 26 in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).
—Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 28 Feb. 2024
Koi carp are bred to create their distinctive markings.
—David Morgan, CBS News, 15 Mar. 2024
Koi’s Garden The action on this dial involves a pair of three-dimensional carp fish swimming in a stream surrounded by colorful pebbles.
—Carol Besler, Robb Report, 12 Mar. 2024
Usually that fish is a catfish, though turtles and rough fish like carp may also be caught by hand in some states.
—Natalie Krebs, Outdoor Life, 15 Nov. 2023
When not complaining about his unrecognized genius, Martin carps about his wife (Jena Malone).
—Lovia Gyarkye, The Hollywood Reporter, 25 Jan. 2024
Still, other species such as Asian carp and zebra mussels are doing big damage, especially in our waterways.
—Sarah Bowman, The Indianapolis Star, 27 Feb. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'carp.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near carp
Cite this Entry
“Carp.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/carp. Accessed 24 Apr. 2024.
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