multiple

American  

[muhl-tuh-puhl] / ˈmʌl tə pəl /

adjective

1. consisting of, having, or involving several or many individuals, parts, elements, relations, etc.; manifold.

2. Electricity.

   1. (of circuits) arranged in parallel.

   2. (of a circuit or circuits) having a number of points at which connection can be made.

3. Botany. (of a fruit) collective.

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noun

multiples plural

1. Mathematics. a number that contains another number an integral number of times without a remainder.

   12 is a multiple of 3.

2. Electricity. a group of terminals arranged to make a circuit or group of circuits accessible at a number of points at any one of which connection can be made.

multiple British  

/ ˈmʌltɪpəl /

adjective

1. having or involving more than one part, individual, etc

   he had multiple injuries

2. electronics (of a circuit) having a number of conductors in parallel

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noun

1. the product of a given number or polynomial and any other one

   6 is a multiple of 2

2. telephony an electrical circuit accessible at a number of points to any one of which a connection can be made

3. short for multiple store

multiple Scientific  

/ mŭl′tə-pəl /

1. A number that may be divided by another number with no remainder. For example, 4, 10, and 32 are multiples of 2.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonmultiple
  adjective
• multiply
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• multiples
  plural

Etymology

Origin of multiple

First recorded in 1570–80; from French, from Late Latin multiplus “manifold”; see multi-

Explanation

When you're talking about more than one, you're talking about multiple things. A machine with many fixtures has multiple parts. A person that seems like two totally different people on different days might have multiple personalities. The word multiple comes from the Latin multiplus meaning "manifold." When something exists in multiple forms, it's manifold, or has many kinds. Think of a multiplex theater that can show multiple movies at once. Walk through a garden full of flowers and you'll see multiple kinds of blooms. A multiple is also a number that can be divided into another number without a remainder. Multiples of five, for example are ten, fifteen, twenty... — you get the picture.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

multiple multiples

The number of people who have to work multiple jobs to make ends meet reached 9.4 million in November 2025, the highest level since the Bureau of Labor Statistics started tracking that indicator in 1994.

From Salon ● Jul. 26, 2026

But agents say some renters wrongly believe permission to have a pet is guaranteed, and landlords say some homes remain unsuitable for multiple pets or large dogs.

From BBC ● Jul. 26, 2026

Yet Supino added that he now values AT&T’s stock at an earnings multiple “below historic averages to reflect a stubborn Starlink overhang.”

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 25, 2026

“It’s even healthier for a company in the long term to have multiple programs.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 24, 2026

No crude explanation of the decisions he made can do justice to the multiple loyalties he felt, or the almost Jamesian way he thought about and ultimately resolved them.

From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis

In theory, savings should be multiples of the amount spent on prevention.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 19, 2026

Add the growth variable to the mix, however, “and believe it or not, these peers have seen their post-2020 multiples compress by even more.”

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 9, 2026

“This industry is going through a sea change, and we think multiples will increase commensurate with the revenue growth these companies are beginning to produce,” Mazza said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 6, 2026

That kind of headwind isn’t reflected in tech’s current sky-high multiples.

From Barron's ● Jun. 30, 2026

Then you take away all the numbers that are multiples of 4 and 5 and 6 and 7 and so on.

From "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time" by Mark Haddon

Related Words

• different
• numerous
• various