beekeeper

American

[bee-kee-per] / ˈbiˌki pər /

noun

a person who raises honeybees; apiculturist.

beekeeper British

/ ˈbiːˌkiːpə /

noun

a person who keeps bees for their honey; apiarist

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

beekeeping noun

Etymology

Origin of beekeeper

First recorded in 1810–20; bee ¹ + keeper

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

"There's not enough help," said Bartolo Quirino, a 42-year-old beekeeper.

From Barron's • Oct. 15, 2025

Police and firefighters fenced off the area and a beekeeper was called in to smoke out the bees - a safe way to calm the insects.

From BBC • Jul. 8, 2025

The beekeeper, who sells his own honey from nearby Priorslee, said when bees did this they had "nothing to defend so tend not to be too aggressive".

From BBC • Jun. 16, 2025

Today, we employ two full-time farmers, five gardeners and a beekeeper.

From Salon • Nov. 29, 2024

She still knows more about bees than anyone who isn’t an actual beekeeper because she got so into her sixth-grade science fair project.

From "Keeping Pace" by Laurie Morrison

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023