Meaning & use
larp
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Meanings
nouncountableinformal
A game in which people dress up and act out the roles of characters in a story, usually outdoors or in a large space.
Grammar: Takes a plural larps and is often used as a hobby: she goes to a larp each month.
Patterns
- a larp event
- go to a larp
We spent the weekend at a fantasy larp in the forest.
The larp had a hundred players, each with a costume and a secret goal.
His first larp was a medieval battle.
verbintransitiveinformal
To take part in a live-action role-playing game.
Grammar: No object: they larp every summer.
Patterns
- larp as something
- larp in something
They larp every summer in an old castle.
She larps as an elf with a handmade cloak.
Friends from college larped together in the park.
verbintransitiveslangdisapproving
In internet slang, to pretend online to be something one is not, such as rich or tough, usually in a way that others find fake.
Grammar: Often used with as: he is larping as an expert.
Patterns
- larp as something
He is larping as a rich investor in the comments.
Stop larping and admit you have never been there.
People accused the account of larping as a famous chef.
Word forms
| third person singular | larps |
|---|---|
| past tense | larped |
| past participle | larped |
| present participle | larping |
Common combinations
- go to a larp
- We went to a larp in the woods last month.
- fantasy larp
- The fantasy larp involved wizards and dragons.
- larp as
- He larps as a knight every weekend.
- larp costume
- Her larp costume took two months to sew.
- stop larping
- Everyone told him to stop larping and be honest.
Synonyms and how they differ
- role-play
- Role-play is the general term, and a larp is a specific kind with full costumes and physical action.
- cosplay
- Cosplay is dressing as a character for display, whereas a larp involves acting out a story with other players.
- pretend
- Pretend is the plain word for acting as if something is true, but the slang larp adds mockery of someone faking a role.
- fake it
- Fake it is a casual phrase for pretending, but it lacks the gaming and internet flavor of larp.
Opposites
Word family
- larper noun
- a person who takes part in larps
- larping noun
- the activity of taking part in larps
- role-play noun
- acting out a character
- roleplayer noun
- a person who plays roles in games
Commonly confused: larp or cosplay?
larp vs cosplay
Cosplay means dressing as a character, while larp means acting out a role in an interactive story.
Practice
In the sentence 'He keeps larping as a wealthy investor online', what does larping mean?
Choose one answer.
In slang, larping online means faking a role, here pretending to be rich. The other options have no link to pretending.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “larp”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.