cut or gather (a crop or harvest):many men were employed to reap the harvest figurativein terms of science, the Apollo programme reaped a meagre harvest
harvest the crop from (a piece of land):farmers agreed to continue reaping the land by traditional means
receive (something, especially something beneficial) as a consequence of one’s own or another’s actions:the company is poised to reap the benefits of this investment
reap the harvest (or fruits) of
suffer the results or consequences of:we are now reaping the harvest of our permissive ways
you reap what you sow
proverb you eventually have to face up to the consequences of your actions.