har·vest | /ˈhärvəst/
Definition of Harvest
Noun (ˈhärvəst)
- The act of collecting the season’s crops
- Another name for a farmer’s yield
- The amount of livestock or wild animals hunted for use
- The outcome of a particular action or activity
Verb (ˈhärvəst)
- To collect a yield of crops
- To capture and possibly kill animals to be used as a human resource
- Extract organs from a deceased human or animal for use in experiments
- To acquire assets (typically natural resources) to be used for the future
Usage of Harvest
Noun
- The farmer’s children loved helping him with the harvest.
- Due to a lack of rain, this year’s harvest was abysmal.
- Due to the overpopulation of lions, there was a minuscule harvest of rabbits.
- Due to Halloween being on a Friday, the children yielded a large harvest of candy.
Verb
- After harvesting the corn, the farmer took a long, much-needed nap.
- The hunter harvested a large boar and 6 ducks for the winter.
- The clinic spent all night harvesting organs in order to advance their research.
- NASA is looking into more efficient ways to harvest energy for further space exploration.
Origin of Harvest
The word “harvest” comes from the Old English term hærfest which refers to the autumn season between the months of August and November when crops were typically gathered. Originally the term was used as only a subtle reference to mean “to gather crops.”
Prior to the 14th century, the German word herfst was used primarily to refer to the autumn or fall season. The word “harvest” is now used when describing a time of gathering or the result of that which was gathered.
