hamper.
A large basket, usually with a cover, used for the packing and carrying of articles or small animals.
Meaning & usage
A large basket, usually with a cover, used for the packing and carrying of articles or small animals.
a hamper of wine
a clothes hamper
A wicker or plastic basket specifically for holding laundry (from clothes hamper).
A gift basket.
Where this word comes from
From Middle English hamper, contracted from hanaper, hanypere, from Anglo-Norman hanaper, Old French hanapier, hanepier (“case for holding a large goblet or cup”), from hanap (“goblet, drinking cup”), from Frankish *hnapp (“cup, bowl, basin”), from Proto-Germanic *hnappaz (“cup, bowl”). Cognate with Old High German hnapf (“cup, bowl, basin”) (German Napf (“bowl”)), Dutch nap (“cup”), Old English hnæpp (“bowl”). More at nap.
To put into a hamper.
Competition pigeons are hampered for the truck trip to the point of release where the race back starts.
Where this word comes from
From Middle English hamper, contracted from hanaper, hanypere, from Anglo-Norman hanaper, Old French hanapier, hanepier (“case for holding a large goblet or cup”), from hanap (“goblet, drinking cup”), from Frankish *hnapp (“cup, bowl, basin”), from Proto-Germanic *hnappaz (“cup, bowl”). Cognate with Old High German hnapf (“cup, bowl, basin”) (German Napf (“bowl”)), Dutch nap (“cup”), Old English hnæpp (“bowl”). More at nap.
To put a hamper or fetter on; to shackle.
To impede in motion or progress.
Where this word comes from
From Middle English hamperen, hampren (“to hamper, oppress”), probably of the same origin as English hamble (“to limp”), Scots hamp (“to halt in walking, stutter”), Dutch haperen (“to falter, hesitate”), German hemmen (“to stop, hinder, check”). More at hamble.
A shackle; a fetter; anything which impedes.
Articles ordinarily indispensable, but in the way at certain times.
Where this word comes from
From Middle English hamperen, hampren (“to hamper, oppress”), probably of the same origin as English hamble (“to limp”), Scots hamp (“to halt in walking, stutter”), Dutch haperen (“to falter, hesitate”), German hemmen (“to stop, hinder, check”). More at hamble.
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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.
Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.