Har·py

(här′pē)

n. pl. Har·pies

1. Greek Mythology One of several loathsome, voracious monsters with the head and trunk of a woman and the tail, wings, and talons of a bird.

2. harpy A predatory person.

3. harpy A shrewish woman.

[Latin harpȳia, singular of Latin harpȳiae, the Harpies, from Greek harpūiai.]

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

harpy

(ˈhɑːpɪ)

n, pl -pies

a cruel grasping woman

[C16: from Latin Harpyia, from Greek Harpuiai the Harpies, literally: snatchers, from harpazein to seize]

Harpy

(ˈhɑːpɪ)

n, pl -pies

(Classical Myth & Legend) Greek myth a ravenous creature with a woman's head and trunk and a bird's wings and claws

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

Har•py

(ˈhɑr pi)

n., pl. -pies.

1. any of a group of winged supernatural beings of classical myth, two or three in number, portrayed by later authors as rapacious female monsters.

2. (l.c.) a scolding, bad-tempered woman; shrew.

3. (l.c.) a greedy, predatory person.

[1540–50; < Latin Harpȳia, singular of Harpȳiae < Greek Hárpȳiai (pl.), literally, snatchers, akin to harpázein to snatch away]

harp′y•like`, adj.

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Noun	1.	harpy - a malicious woman with a fierce temper hellcat, vixen disagreeable woman, unpleasant woman - a woman who is an unpleasant person
	2.	Harpy - (Greek mythology) vicious winged monster; often depicted as a bird with the head of a woman Greek mythology - the mythology of the ancient Greeks mythical creature, mythical monster - a monster renowned in folklore and myth
	3.	harpy - any of various fruit bats of the genus Nyctimene distinguished by nostrils drawn out into diverging tubes harpy bat, tube-nosed bat, tube-nosed fruit bat fruit bat, megabat - large Old World bat of warm and tropical regions that feeds on fruit genus Nyctimene, Nyctimene - East Indian fruit bats
	4.	harpy - large black-and-white crested eagle of tropical America Harpia harpyja, harpy eagle bird of Jove, eagle - any of various large keen-sighted diurnal birds of prey noted for their broad wings and strong soaring flight genus Harpia, Harpia - a genus of Accipitridae

harpy

noun

A person, traditionally a woman, who persistently nags or criticizes:

fishwife, fury, scold, shrew, termagant, virago, vixen.

Informal: battle-ax.

Translations

chipie

arpia

harpy

[ˈhɑːpɪ] N → arpía f

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

harpy

[ˈhɑː^rpi] n

(in mythology) → harpie f

(pejorative) (= woman) → mégère f, harpie f

Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

harpy

n → Harpyie f; (= shrewish woman) → Hexe f; (= grasping person) → Hyäne f

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

Harpy

[ˈhɑːpɪ] n (Myth) (fig) → arpia

Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

Mentioned in

References in classic literature

Immediately he took the shape of a harpy, and, filled with rage, was determined to devour his son, and even the Princess too, if only he could overtake them.

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'This crook-nosed, gross-bodied harpy'; 'this civic sinner, this judicial highwayman'; 'possessing the morals of the Tenderloin and an honor which thieves' honor puts to shame'; 'who compounds criminality with shyster-sharks, and in atonement railroads the unfortunate and impecunious to rotting cells,'--and so forth and so forth, style sophomoric and devoid of the dignity and tone one would employ in a dissertation on 'Surplus Value,' or 'The Fallacies of Marxism,' but just the stuff the dear public likes.

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Nothing short of the twelve dollars and a half will satisfy this harpy, I perceive; and surely my reputation as judge is worth that trifle.”

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But her most subtle wiles proved ineffectual in ridding her, even for a moment, of her harpy jailer; and now that the final summons had come she was beside herself for a lack of means to thwart her captor.

View in context

Woman, the toy; woman, the harpy; woman, the necessary wife and mother of the race's offspring,--all this had been his expectation and understanding of woman.

View in context

"What a little harpy that woman from Hampshire is, Clump," Squills remarked, "that has seized upon old Tilly Crawley.

View in context

The anti-radiation UAV developed by National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology (NCSIST) was first exhibited at the 2017 TADTE, and was compared to the Harpy anti-radiation weapon system.

Taiwan military to spend NT$80 billion on anti-radiation drone fleet

Still, the spectre of death suddenly looms like a menacing harpy, that other mythological bird which the Roman poet described as the vulture.

Back stories of beautiful songs

The harpy eagle soaring, which I'd looked out at from the plane as it zeroed in on its prey.

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The origin of this hell-bound harpy in a habit, teased in a post-end credits scene in last year's Annabelle: Creation, provides a couple of predictable jolts, but no lasting shivers in Corin Hardy's creaky supernatural horror.

Film in cinemas /The Nun (15)

Harpy Underbelly Cowgate, Edinburgh, Until Aug 26, 4pm, PS12, 0131-510 2270 I'm "when gut Everyone knows someone like Birdie.

Hoards of reasons to see show

Not only does matriarch Dorothy have to contend with sudden widowhood, but she's also faced with church-committee harpy Ozella Meeks sticking her nose in the family business, Dewey's snake-in-the-grass brother making a grab for her house, and two grown daughters reliving their childhood rivalry.

Gallery Theater presents 'Southern Fried Funeral'