hamper

English

A selection of wicker hampers.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈhæm.pə/

  • Audio (Southern England):

    (file)

• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈhæm.pɚ/
• Rhymes: -æmpə(ɹ)

Etymology 1

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.

Alternative forms

• hampire (obsolete)

Noun

hamper (plural hampers)

1. 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

   an oyster hamper, which contains two bushels

2. (uncommon outside New England) A wicker or plastic basket specifically for holding laundry (from clothes hamper), as opposed to a covered wicker basket which is a true hamper.
3. (UK) A gift basket.

Translations

large basket

• Armenian: զամբյուղ (hy) (zambyuġ), կողով (hy) (koġov)
• Bulgarian: кошница с капак f (košnica s kapak)
• Czech: koš (cs) m
• Dutch: korf (nl), mand (nl) m, pakmand (nl) m, sluitmand m, wasmand (nl) m
• Esperanto: korbo (eo)
• Finnish: kori (fi)
• French: panier d’osier m, bourriche (fr) f
• German: Korb (de) m
• Irish: ciseán (ga) m (for food, full of food and drink), ciseach f (for food), cis f (full of food and drink)
• Italian: cesta (it) f, cesto (it) m, canestro (it) m, paniere (it) m
• Maori: whakatomo, tokanga (for food), whirirua
• Portuguese: balaio (pt) m, seira (pt) f, canastra (pt) f
• Russian: корзи́на (ru) f (korzína)
• Spanish: cesto (es) m, cuévano (es) m, canasto (es) m
• Swedish: korg (sv) c

Verb

hamper (third-person singular simple present hampers, present participle hampering, simple past and past participle hampered)

1. (transitive) To put into a hamper.

   Competition pigeons are hampered for the truck trip to the point of release where the race back starts.

Translations

to put into a hamper

• Catalan: recloure (ca)
• Dutch: inkorven (nl)
• Finnish: panna koriin
• Italian: ingabbiare (it), rinchiudere (it)

Etymology 2

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.

Verb

hamper (third-person singular simple present hampers, present participle hampering, simple past and past participle hampered)

1. (transitive) To put a hamper or fetter on; to shackle.

   Synonyms: ensnare, inveigle

   • 1607 (first performance), [Francis Beaumont], The Knight of the Burning Pestle, London: […] [Nicholas Okes] for Walter Burre, […], published 1613, →OCLC, Act III, signature F2, verso:

     Wife. Away George, away, raise the watch at Ludgate, and bring a Mittimus from the Iustice for this desperate villaine. Now I charge you Gentlemen, see the Kings peace kept. O my heart what a varlet's this to offer manslaughter vpon the harmlesse Gntlewoman?
     Cit. I warrant thee (sweet heart) wee'l haue him hampered.

   • 1692, Roger L’Estrange, “ (please specify the fable number.) (please specify the name of the fable.)”, in Fables, of Æsop and Other Eminent Mythologists: […], London: […] R[ichard] Sare, […], →OCLC:

     A lion hampered in a net.

2. To impede in motion or progress.

   Synonyms: hinder, embarrass, encumber

   • 1712, Richard Blackmore, Creation: A Philosophical Poem:

     Engend'ring heats, these one by one unbind, Stretch their small tubes, and hamper'd nerves unwind.

   • a. 1694, John Tillotson, The Advantages of Religion:

     They hamper and entangle our souls.

   • 2020 April 8, Paul Stephen, “ECML dive-under drives divergence”, in Rail, page 44:

     NR Senior Programme Manager Adrian Elliott describes the progress to date: "The weather has played a big part in hampering the programme. We had the wettest autumn ever and a number of winter storms to contend with, [...]

Translations

to put a hamper or fetter on; to shackle; to ensnare; to inveigle

• Bulgarian: препятствам (bg) (prepjatstvam), затруднявам (bg) (zatrudnjavam), преча (bg) (preča)
• Dutch: blokkeren (nl)
• Esperanto: malhelpi (eo)
• Estonian: takistama, segama
• Finnish: kahlita (fi), haitata (fi), vaikeuttaa (fi), estää (fi)
• French: entraver (fr)
• German: sich verstricken (figuratively), sich verheddern
• Hungarian: gátol (hu)
• Irish: bac a chur ar, srian a chur ar
• Italian: impedire (it), ostacolare (it), ostruire (it), bloccare (it), sbarrare (it), intralciare (it)
• Maori: whakakōroiroi, whakakōpekapeka, kaiwaenga
• Polish: ujarzmić pf, uwięzić (pl) pf, usidlić (pl) pf, spętać pf
• Portuguese: impedir (pt), estorvar (pt), obstruir (pt)
• Russian: затрудня́ть (ru) (zatrudnjátʹ)
• Spanish: estorbar (es), obstaculizar (es)
• Swedish: hindra (sv), hämma (sv)

to impede in motion or progress

• Czech: překážet (cs) impf, bránit (cs) impf, vadit (cs) impf
• Esperanto: ĝeni (eo)
• French: entraver (fr), empêcher (fr)
• German: aufhalten (de), behindern (de), hemmen (de)
• Gothic: 𐌼𐌰𐍂𐌶𐌾𐌰𐌽 (marzjan)
• Latin: impediō
• Spanish: dificultar (es)

Noun

hamper (plural hampers)

1. A shackle; a fetter; anything which impedes.
2. (nautical) Articles ordinarily indispensable, but in the way at certain times.
   • 1847 March 30, Herman Melville, Omoo: A Narrative of Adventures in the South Seas; […], London: John Murray, […], →OCLC:

     One afternoon there was a mighty queer noise aloft, which set the men running in every direction. It was the main-t'-gallant-mast. Crash! it broke off just above the cap, and held there by the rigging, dashed with every roll from side to side, with all the hamper that belonged to it.

Derived terms

• top-hamper (“unnecessary spars and rigging kept aloft”)

Translations

anything which impedes

• Bulgarian: пречка (bg) f (prečka), препятствие (bg) n (prepjatstvie)
• Dutch: hindernis (nl), beletsel (nl) n, obstakel (nl) n, struikelblok (nl) n
• Finnish: este (fi), pidäke (fi)
• French: obstacle (fr) m
• German: Hindernis (de) n, Hemmnis (de) n, Hemmschuh (de) m (fig.)
• Italian: ostacolo (it) m, impedimento (it) m, ingombro (it) m
• Polish: przeszkoda (pl) f, zawada (pl) f

articles ordinarily indispensable, but in the way at certain times

• Dutch: waarloos (nl)
• Irish: ^{(please verify)} amparán m
• Italian: ingombro di coperta m

Anagrams

• Perham

Indonesian

Alternative forms

• hampers

Etymology

Borrowed from English hamper.

Pronunciation

• (Standard Indonesian)
  • IPA^(key): /ˈhampər/ [ˈham.pər]
  • IPA^(key): /ˈhɛmpər/ [ˈhɛm.pər]
• Syllabification: ham‧per

Noun

hampêr (plural hamper-hamper)

1. a gift, especially in a hamper or something similar

Further reading

• “hamper” in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia, Jakarta: Agency for Language Development and Cultivation – Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia, 2016.

Old Swedish

Alternative forms

• hampa

Etymology

From Old Norse hampr, from Proto-Germanic *hanapiz.

Noun

hamper m

1. hemp

Declension

Declension of hamper (strong a-stem)

masculine	singular		plural
	indefinite	definite	indefinite	definite
nominative	hamper	hamprin	hampar	hampanir, hampaner
accusative	hamp	hampin	hampa	hampana
dative	hampi, hampe	hampinum, hampenom	hampum, hampom	hampumin, hampomen
genitive	hamps	hampsins	hampa	hampanna

Descendants

• Swedish: hampa

References

• hamper in Svenska Akademiens ordbok (SAOB)
• hamper in Knut Fredrik Söderwall, Ordbok öfver svenska medeltids-språket, del 1: A-L