Definition of CAMP

camp

Meanings

Plural: camps

Noun

  • temporary living quarters specially built by the army for soldiers
    • "wherever he went in the camp the men were grumbling"
  • a group of people living together in a camp
    • "the whole camp laughed at his mistake"
  • temporary lodgings in the country for travelers or vacationers
    • "level ground is best for parking and camp areas"
  • an exclusive circle of people with a common purpose
  • a penal institution (often for forced labor)
    • "China has many camps for political prisoners"
  • something that is considered amusing not because of its originality but because of its unoriginality
    • "the living room was pure camp"
  • shelter for persons displaced by war or political oppression or for religious beliefs
  • a site where care and activities are provided for children during the summer months
    • "city kids get to see the country at a summer camp"
  • An outdoor place acting as temporary accommodation in tents or other simple structures.
  • An organised event, often taking place in tents or temporary accommodation.
  • A base of a military group, not necessarily temporary.
  • A place of politically motivated confinement in outdoorsy conditions, usually also leading to slave labor and death.
  • A single hut or shelter.
  • The company or body of persons encamped.
  • A group of people with the same strong ideals or political leanings.
  • An army.
  • Clipping of campus
  • Any prison or prison camp.
  • Misconstruction of clamp (“mound of earth in which potatoes and other vegetables are stored”).
  • Anywhere that a colonist stayed when away from their permanent residence; such places collectively.
  • Conflict; battle.
  • An online game, in some cases roleplay, in which people compete against each other, usually in a structure similar to that of a competition show.
  • An affected, exaggerated, or intentionally tasteless style.
  • The areas of the Falkland Islands situated outside the capital and largest settlement, Stanley.
  • An electoral constituency of the legislative assembly of the Falkland Islands that composes of all territory more than 3.5 miles from the spire of the Christ Church Cathedral in Stanley.

Verb

  • live in or as if in a tent
    • "Can we go camping again this summer?"
    • "The houseguests had to camp in the living room"
  • establish or set up a camp
  • give an artificially banal or sexual quality to
  • To live in a tent or similar temporary accommodation.
  • To set up a camp.
  • To afford rest or lodging for.
  • To stay in an advantageous location.
  • To stay beside (something) to gain an advantage.
  • Ellipsis of corpse camp.
  • To fight; contend in battle or in any kind of contest; to strive with others in doing anything; compete.
  • To wrangle; argue.
  • To behave in a camp manner.

Adjective Satellite

  • providing sophisticated amusement by virtue of having artificially (and vulgarly) mannered or banal or sentimental qualities
    • "they played up the silliness of their roles for camp effect"
    • "campy Hollywood musicals of the 1940's"

Adj

  • Theatrical; making exaggerated gestures.
  • Ostentatiously effeminate.
  • Intentionally tasteless or vulgar; self-parodying.

Origin / Etymology

From Middle English kampe (“battlefield, open space”), from Old English camp (“battle, contest, battlefield, open space”), from Proto-West Germanic *kamp (“open field where military exercises are held, level plain”), from Latin campus (“open field, level plain”), from Proto-Indo-European *kh₂emp- (“to bend; crooked”). Reinforced circa 1520 by Middle French can, camp (“place where an army lodges temporarily”), from Old Northern French camp, from the same Latin (whence also French champ from Old French). Cognate with Old High German champf (“battle, struggle”) (German Kampf), Old Norse kapp (“battle”), Old High German hamf (“paralysed, maimed, mutilated”). Doublet of campus and champ.
The verb is from Middle English campen, from Old English campian, compian (“to fight, war against”), from Proto-West Germanic *kampōn (“to fight, do battle”), from *kamp (“field, battlefield, battle”), see above. Cognate with Dutch kampen, German kämpfen (“to struggle”), Danish kæmpe, Swedish kämpa.

Synonyms

bivouac, camp down, camp it up, camp out, campish, campy, cantonment, clique, coterie, encamp, encampment, ingroup, inner circle, pack, refugee camp, summer camp, tent

Antonyms

uncamp, uncampy

Scrabble Score: 10

camp is a valid Scrabble (US) TWL word
camp is a valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
camp is a valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary

Words With Friends Score: 13

camp is a valid Words With Friends word