people
Americannoun
-
persons indefinitely or collectively; persons in general.
to find it easy to talk to people; What will people think?
-
persons, whether men, women, or children, considered as numerable individuals forming a group.
Twenty people volunteered to help.
-
human beings, as distinguished from animals or other beings.
-
the entire body of persons who constitute a community, tribe, nation, or other group by virtue of a common culture, history, religion, or the like.
the people of Australia; the Jewish people.
-
the persons of any particular group, company, or number (sometimes used in combination).
the people of a parish; educated people; salespeople.
-
the ordinary persons, as distinguished from those who have wealth, rank, influence, etc..
a man of the people.
-
the subjects, followers, or subordinates of a ruler, leader, employer, etc..
the king and his people.
-
the body of enfranchised citizens of a state.
representatives chosen by the people.
-
a person's family or relatives.
My grandmother's people came from Iowa.
-
(used in the possessive in Communist or left-wing countries to indicate that an institution operates under the control of or for the benefit of the people, especially under Communist leadership).
people's republic; people's army.
-
animals of a specified kind.
the monkey people of the forest.
verb (used with object)
-
to furnish with people; populate.
-
to supply or stock as if with people.
a meadow peopled with flowers.
noun
-
persons collectively or in general
-
a group of persons considered together
blind people
-
the persons living in a country and sharing the same nationality
the French people
-
one's family
he took her home to meet his people
-
persons loyal to someone powerful
the king's people accompanied him in exile
-
-
the mass of persons without special distinction, privileges, etc
-
the body of persons in a country, esp those entitled to vote
-
verb
Grammar
Is the plural persons or people? See person.
Usage
People is usually followed by a plural verb and referred to by a plural pronoun: People are always looking for a bargain. The people have made their choice. The possessive is formed regularly, with the apostrophe before the -s: people's desire for a bargain; the people's choice. When people means “the entire body of persons who constitute a community or other group by virtue of a common culture, history, etc.,” it is used as a singular, with the plural peoples : This people shares characteristics with certain inhabitants of central Asia. The aboriginal peoples of the Western Hemisphere speak many different languages. The formation of the possessive is regular; the singular is people's and the plural is peoples '. At one time, some usage guides maintained that people could not be preceded by a number, as in Fewer than 30 people showed up. This use is now unquestionably standard in all contexts.
Synonym Usage
See race 2.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
-
outpeopleverb (used with object)
-
underpeopledadjective
-
peoplernoun
-
well-peopledadjective
-
peoplelessadjective
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
have peopledperfect
-
has peopledperfect 3rd person singular
-
is peoplingprogressive 3rd person singular
-
has been peoplingperfect progressive 3rd person singular
-
peoplingparticiple
-
peoplessingular 3rd person
-
have been peoplingperfect progressive
-
am peoplingprogressive 1st person singular
-
are peoplingprogressive
Past
-
had peopledperfect
-
was peoplingprogressive singular
-
had been peoplingperfect progressive
-
were peoplingprogressive plural
-
peopledparticiple
-
peopledsimple
Future
Etymology
Origin of people
First recorded in 1225–75; Middle English peple, from Anglo-French poeple, Old French pueple, from Latin populus; see popular
Explanation
Human beings are people. Individuals, folks, humankind — we're all people. The word people is usually a noun, as in: two or more humans. It can also mean "all the citizens," as in a political leader who understands the needs of the people. People can also be a verb meaning "to inhabit or fill with people," as in: we need to people the empty seats so that tonight's speaker isn't disappointed with a small audience.
Vocabulary lists containing people
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.
Attorney’s Office of the Western District of Virginia to probe whether the incessant violations of antipollution laws had risen to the level of criminal behavior, people familiar with the matter said.
From Salon • Jun. 10, 2026
"We had so many people coming that we had to shut the doors because nobody else could fit in the space," he said.
From BBC • Jun. 10, 2026
“I get people who see it as sounding crazy,” said Kostas Moros, a director at the Second Amendment Foundation.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 10, 2026
Another correspondent in the coastal city of Sidon, further north, saw displaced people arriving from Tyre, some with belongings strapped to the roofs of their cars.
From Barron's • Jun. 10, 2026
He doesn’t know any local people in Manila, besides the priests at the university and two other men from the Grant who’d been stranded with him.
From "At Last She Stood" by Erin Entrada Kelly
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
