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legion
[ lee-juhn ]
noun
- a division of the Roman army, usually comprising 3000 to 6000 soldiers.
- a military or semimilitary unit.
- the Legion.
- any large group of armed men.
- any great number of persons or things; multitude.
adjective
- very great in number:
The holy man's faithful followers were legion.
legion
/ ˈliːdʒən /
noun
- a military unit of the ancient Roman army made up of infantry with supporting cavalry, numbering some three to six thousand men
- any large military force
the French Foreign Legion
- usually capital an association of ex-servicemen
the British Legion
- often plural any very large number, esp of people
adjective
- usually postpositive very large or numerous
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Word History and Origins
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Word History and Origins
Origin of legion1
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Example Sentences
Because the companies that Reddit’s legion of traders decided to pump were ultimately not selected for anything other than price plasticity.
As legions of day traders drove up GameStop’s share price more than than 1,700% this month, institutional investors who had bet against it have stomached massive losses, scrambling to cover their positions by buying the stock back.
Hathiramani sees his startup as an onramp to the tech industry for legions of workers who have the skillsets to work in tech, but lack the network to see themselves in the business.
All have been criticized for inflating the cost of living in big cities, particularly on the West Coast, where legions of well-paid software developers helped drive up housing prices.
Instances of PPP fraud are legion and continue to pile up, from the fake Florida ministry that allegedly received more than $8 million in government funds to the Texas man who allegedly poured nearly $1 million of PPP money into cryptocurrency.
Oprah, when she came, found a legion of her fans on its doorstep.
We will see some surprising groups, maybe a legion of them, face the Six.
First, in his opening remarks yesterday, the pontiff towed a much more conservative line than his legion of new fans might expect.
Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl reportedly tried to join the Legion before enlisting in the U.S. Army.
That will be a harder claim to make after today: its soccer team is a doughty legion.
He was, for this reason, at once elected lieutenant-colonel of the volunteer legion of the Pyrenees.
This weakened the defence of the land against the northern tribes, as the legion never returned.
She constantly wore on her breast the cross of chevalier of the Legion of Honor conferred on her husband by the Emperor.
Western gamblers are legion—a reckless, money-plunging, romantic and venturesome yet an admittedly square-shooting clan.
He was also made chevalier of nearly all the orders in Italy, and member of the Legion of Honour.
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More About Legion
What is a legion?
A legion is a large group of people or things, most commonly soldiers, as in World-famous author Stephen King has a legion of fans.
Legion can also describe a very large number, as in The number of soccer fans around the world is legion.
During the Roman Empire, legion referred to a division of the army that numbered between 3,000 to 6,000 soldiers. As a result, we use legion to refer to a large number of soldiers. However, legion is now used more generally to mean any big group of people or things.
Example: The city was filled with legions of fans after the rock star announced they would perform a concert there.
Where does legion come from?
The first records of legion come from around 1175. It ultimately comes from the Latin legiōn, meaning “a gathered body of soldiers.”
The Roman army, one of the most powerful in history, was divided into military units or groups known as legions. Legions were made of thousands of soldiers who kept order in Rome’s huge empire. Many organizations since, such as the American Legion and the French Foreign Legion have likely used the word legion to refer to Rome’s military power.
Today, legion is instead used more generally to mean a very big group of people or things. Similar to a horde or a swarm, a legion is a group so large that it is beyond counting and might even seem endless. A large library, for example, might be stocked with legions of books that fill hundreds of shelves.
Similarly, legion also describes a gigantic number. For example, in the Bible, a demon possessing a man tells Jesus that “my name is Legion, for we are many.” The hacker group Anonymous describes itself as legion because of its supposed large number of members.
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What are some other forms related to legion?
- legionary (adjective, noun)
- legionnaire (noun)
What are some synonyms for legion?
What are some words that share a root or word element with legion?
What are some words that often get used in discussing legion?
How is legion used in real life?
Legion is often used to mean a huge group of people or things.
I don't know if the new myspace design is enough to save them from the legions of haters, but it's cool that they're trying.
— Garin Kilpatrick (@Garin) November 16, 2010
Legions of toys and my kid only wants to play with a Taco Bell cup.
— Anna Rev (@revelinanna) January 2, 2017
Enjoying time with my wife and the legion of cats, who are sleeping happily.
— David O’Mahony (@DavidOMahony) November 10, 2012
Try using legion!
Is legion used correctly in the following sentence?
The protest was attended by a legion of people that stretched for miles.
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