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harp-shaped

harp-shaped

1 4.6
Having the curved shape of a harp
  • adjective
  • /hɑrp-ʃeɪpt/
: en forma de arpa
  • The garden featured a harp-shaped flowerbed that resembled the instrument.

Examples

  • Its beauty was mesmerizing—the exotic pattern of the black-and-white keys, the harp-shaped top open like a treasure trunk.

    Fiction book (1999)
  • At the tree, the white pine, its harp-shaped body dark in thin sunlight.

    Fiction book (1994)
  • The artist created a sculpture with a harp-shaped design that caught everyone's attention.

  • The building's roof had a unique harp-shaped structure, which made it stand out in the skyline.

Surface Forms

harp-shaped positive

Morphology

harp-shaped = harp + shaped (transparent) = harp + shape + ed

The immediate base is the transparent compound 'harp' + 'shaped', and the meaning follows the usual English pattern of 'X-shaped' meaning shaped like X.

Etymology

Harp-shaped is made of harp and -shaped, and it means 'in the shape of a harp'. A harp is a stringed instrument with a tall, curved frame, so something harp-shaped looks like that curved, triangular form.