grim reaper
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Grim Reaper¹
- /ˈɡɹɪm ˈɹiː.pə/ UK
- /ˈɡɹɪm ˈɹi.pɚ/ US
Where it comes from
From grim + reaper, first attested 1847. The word grim previously had a stronger meaning ("fierce, angry, sinister") and had more of an association with ghostliness (compare Old English grima (“specter, apparition”), English grim (n.)). The association between grim and death dates back to at least the late 16th century (the line "grim death, how foul and loathsome is thine image" appears in Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew around 1590). The reaper element comes from the personification of Death as a reaper (harvester) of souls in connection to the popular depiction of Death wielding a scythe. The symbol of the scythe itself comes from a partially unintentional conflation of Cronus (the Titan associated with the harvest, said to have used his scythe to castrate his father Uranus) and Chronos (the personification of Father Time).
proper noun the Grim Reaper · Grim Reapers · grim reaper
-
A personification of Death as an old man, or a skeleton, carrying a scythe, taking souls to the afterlife.
Her husband was dead, and Werper fancied that he could replace in the girl’s heart the position which had been vacated by the act of the grim reaper.
Similar: reaper, Azrael, death, Death, pale rider, rider, angel of death, Shinigami, psychopomp
grim reaper²
proper noun the grim reaper · grim reapers
- Alternative letter-case form of Grim Reaper
Translations
Every language
name personification of Death
| Español | parca, muerte, ángel del la muerte, descarnada, pelona, huesuda |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 사신 sasin, 저승사자 jeoseungsaja |
| 日本語 | 死神 shinigami |
| 中文 | 死神 sǐshén |
| Português | Morte, Ceifador, anjo da morte |
| Français | Faucheuse, Mort, Grande Faucheuse, ange de la mort |
| Deutsch | Gevatter Tod, Sensenmann, Schnitter, Todesengel, Quiqui, Freund Hein |
| Italiano | Tristo Mietitore, Cupo Mietitore, Sinistro Mietitore, angelo della morte |
| Ελληνικά | χάρος cháros, άγγελος θανάτου ángelos thanátou, ανθρωποθεριστής anthropotheristís |
| Română | înger al morții |
| Русский | смерть, костля́вая kostljávaja, а́нгел сме́рти ángel smérti, Азраи́л Azraíl |
| Tiếng Việt | tử thần, thần chết |
| العربية | حِفَاف الْأَرْوَاح ḥifāf al-ʔarwāḥ |
| עברית | מַלְאַךְ הַמָּוֶת mal'ákh hamávet |
Talk about this word "grim reaper." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/grim%20reaper. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. grim reaper. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/grim%20reaper "grim reaper." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/grim%20reaper.Cite this
@misc{grim_reaper_2026,
title = {grim reaper},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/grim%20reaper},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
