kemp

K5E1M3P3
/kɛmp/

noun

A coarse or bristly hair, whisker; (in the plural) knotty hairs that will not felt.

OriginMiddle English kempe ← Old English cenep ← Proto-West Germanic *kanip →
Less commonScrabble 12
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Meanings

kemp1

nounkemp (countable and uncountable, plural kemps)

plural kemps · alternative rare camp

  1. countabledialectalobsoleteuncountableA coarse or bristly hair, whisker; (in the plural) knotty hairs that will not felt.
  2. countabledialectalobsoleteuncountableRough hair, wool, or fur.

kemp2

adjectivekemp (comparative more kemp, superlative most kemp)

comparative more kemp · superlative most kemp

  1. obsoleteShaggy; rough.

kemp3

verbkemp (third-person singular simple present kemps, present participle kemping, simple past and past participle kemped)

present singular third person kemps · participle present kemping · participle past kemped · past kemped

  1. intransitiveobsoleteTo strive or contend in any way; strive for victory.
nounkemp (plural kemps)

plural kemps

  1. ScotlandarchaicA contest in work, etc.

kemp4

nounkemp (plural kemps)

plural kemps

  1. obsoleteA champion; a knight.

Kemp5

proper nounKemp (countable and uncountable, plural Kemps)

plural Kemps

  1. countableuncountableA surname

    Green Party candidate Rose-Ellen Kemp received 29 votes, followed by Liberal Democrat Stuart Kelly with 23.

    2026 August 21, Bob Cooper, Hannah Mitchell, “Reform wins first seat on council in by-election”, in BBC News, archived from the original on 22 Aug 2026, retrieved 03 Sep 2026
  2. A placename
    1. countableuncountableAn unincorporated community in Douglas County, Illinois, United States.
    2. countableuncountableAn unincorporated community in Allen County, Ohio, United States.
    3. countableuncountableA small town in Bryan County, Oklahoma, United States.
    4. countableuncountableA small city in Kaufman County, Texas, United States.

Origin

kemp · noun

  1. Proto-Indo-European*ǵénus“jaw”
  2. Proto-Germanic*kanipaz“beard, moustache, whiskers”
  3. Proto-West Germanic*kanip
  4. Old Englishcenep“moustache; bit (of a bridle, bristling with points)”
  5. Middle Englishkempe“coarse hairs”
  6. Englishkemp

From Middle English kempe (“coarse hairs”), from Old English cenep (“moustache; bit (of a bridle, bristling with points)”), from Proto-West Germanic *kanip, from Proto-Germanic *kanipaz (“beard, moustache, whiskers”), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵénus (“jaw”). Related to chin.

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kemp · adjective

  1. Middle Englishkempe
  2. Englishkemp

From Middle English kempe, campe (“shaggy, rough”).

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kemp · verb, noun

  1. Latincampus
  2. Proto-West Germanic*kampijan“to campaign, do battle”
  3. Old English*cempan“to do battle, fight”
  4. Middle Englishkempen
  5. Englishkemp

From Middle English kempen, from Old English *cempan (“to do battle, fight”), from Proto-West Germanic *kampijan (“to campaign, do battle”), ultimately from Latin campus.

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kemp · noun

  1. Proto-Indo-European*kh₂em-
  2. Proto-Indo-European*kh₂ém-po-s
  3. Proto-Italic*kampos
  4. Latincampus
  5. Proto-West Germanic*kamp
  6. Proto-West Germanic*kampijan
  7. Proto-West Germanic*kampijō
  8. Old Englishcempa
  9. Middle Englishkempe
  10. Englishkemp

From Middle English kempe, from Old English cempa (“warrior, fighter, champion”), from Proto-West Germanic *kampijō (“fighter”), ultimately from Latin campus. Doublet of champion. Cognate with literary German Kämpe (“champion, fighter”), German Kempf.

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Kemp · proper noun

  1. Middle Dutchcanep“hemp”
  2. EnglishKemp

* As an English, Scottish, Dutch, and north/Low German surname, from the noun kemp (“champion, warrior”), similar to Kampf. * As a Dutch and West Flemish occupational surname, from Middle Dutch canep (“hemp”) (see modern hennep). * Also as a Dutch surname Van der Kemp, Brabantine variant of Van der Kamp, from van (“of”) + der (“the”) + kamp (“camp”), related to the first sense above. The place names are from the surname.

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Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with kemp

temphemp
All rhymes →
Cite this entry
APA

kemp. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/kemp

MLA

“kemp.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/kemp. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “kemp,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/kemp.

Source: kemp on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.