Rapper

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˈɹæpɚ/

Definitions

1. An individual who performs vocal art to rhythmic music while often expressing personal experiences and social commentary
2. A musician who utilizes spoken or chanted rhymes delivered in a rhythmic manner often accompanied by a beat or instrumental background
3. A person skilled in composing and performing lyrics that reflect various themes, typically in urban culture, set to music

Etymology: The word is about as transparent as English gets: "rap" with the agent suffix "-er" attached, meaning one who raps. The suffix itself has a long pedigree. It travelled from Latin "-arius," through Old French "-ier," into Middle English as "-er," and it was already doing this job in Old English, where forms like "-ere" turned verbs and nouns into names for people who performed an action. The verb it attaches to is the surprise. "Rap" in its older senses meant a sharp knock or blow, and the verb "to rap" meant to strike something smartly. The music sense grew out of that idea of quick, percussive delivery, so a rapper is, etymologically, someone who strikes out words in rapid bursts rather than a person who "rapped" in the sense of hitting anything. The noun was built the ordinary way, from the verb plus suffix, and carries no separate history beyond that. Its meaning has simply followed the music it describes.

Synonyms: musician, lyricist, singer