a lot

American

[uh lot] / ə ˈlɒt /

noun

lot.

adverb

lot.

a lot Idioms

Very many, a large number; also, very much. For example, A lot of people think the economy is declining, or Sad movies always made her cry a lot. It is sometimes put as a whole lot for greater emphasis, as in I learned a whole lot in his class. It may also emphasize a comparative indication of amount, as in We need a whole lot more pizza to feed everyone, or Mary had a lot less nerve than I expected. [Colloquial; early 1800s]

Spelling

As a noun and adverb, a lot is frequently misspelled as alot.

Etymology

Origin of a lot

First recorded in 1820–30

Compare meaning

How does a-lot compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

allot vs. a lot

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.

This is not the world’s biggest problem, but it has created a lot more friction when I’ve tried to use my top sports apps to, well, check sports scores.

From Slate • Jun. 10, 2026

“This shows a bit more confidence in their business-development strategy and a change from previous deals which have all been a lot smaller,” said Naresh Chouhan, principal at Intron Health, a healthcare equity-research firm.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 10, 2026

An said there were a lot of people on the shoot, adding that they did not intervene and "were so still and just there, staring at me".

From BBC • Jun. 10, 2026

“At the federal level, it’s difficult to continue to produce trillion-dollar bills to support infrastructure, so a lot of it is coming through private investment,” he says.

From Barron's • Jun. 10, 2026

I tried to explain to him that Mr. Harris was a lot more than that.

From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam

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