Kelp
noun, verb ·Moderate ·College level
Definitions
- 1 Any of several large brown algae seaweeds (order Laminariales). countable, uncountable
"Underneath the area demarcated by the buoys, Ms Puckett plants kelp—a type of seaweed—on long ropes that resemble washing lines."
- 2 A hook or crook by which a pot is hung over a fire. dialectal
- 3 large brown seaweeds having fluted leathery fronds wordnet
- 4 The calcined ashes of seaweed, formerly used in glass and iodine manufacture. countable, uncountable
- 5 A sheath. obsolete
- 1 To gather kelp. intransitive
"Just before we reached Seward the pilot got a radio message that a fishing boat in Thumb Cove had some kelp […] Neither of us had ever kelped before but there wasn't much to it, and we started bringing in full boxes back to Eads' barge."
Example
More examples"Usually found in or near kelp forests, sea otters dine on invertebrates such as snails, crabs, octopuses, urchins, and abalone."
Etymology
From Middle English culp, culpe, of uncertain origin; possibly from Old English *colba, *colfa, from Proto-West Germanic *kolbō (“bulb, cob”), from Proto-Germanic *kulbaz (“round object, club”). Compare Middle High German kolbe (“clublike plant”), Old Norse kolfr (“bulb of a plant”).
From Middle English kelpe, kylpe, from Old Norse kilpr (“the handle of a vessel, loop”). Related to Old Norse kelpa (“otter trap”).
Related phrases
More for "kelp"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.