bunch
Americannoun
-
bunches
plural
verb (used with object)
-
bunches,
present (3rd person singular)
-
bunched,
past participle, past
-
bunching
present participle
verb (used without object)
-
bunches,
present (3rd person singular)
-
bunched,
past participle, past
-
bunching
present participle
-
to gather into a cluster; gather together.
-
(of fabric or clothing) to gather into folds (often followed byup ).
noun
-
a number of things growing, fastened, or grouped together
a bunch of grapes
a bunch of keys
-
a collection; group
a bunch of queries
-
informal a group or company
a bunch of boys
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archaic a protuberance
verb
Usage
What is a basic definition of bunch? A bunch is a group of things. Bunch can also specifically mean a group that is connected together. Used informally, a bunch is a group of people. As a verb, bunch means to gather into a group. A bunch is a collection or group of items gathered into one place. If you have a bunch of papers on your desk, for example, you have many papers on your desk.
- Used in a sentence: Angela was happy to see that there were a bunch of presents under the Christmas tree.
- Real-life examples: You might eat from a bunch of grapes and be left with just the stem. A maintenance person usually carries a bunch of keys on a ring.
- Used in a sentence: I bought a small bunch of bananas.
- Used in a sentence: A bunch of kids ran past us to watch the clown perform magic tricks.
- Used in a sentence: I bunched all of the wrapping paper into a ball and threw it in the trash.
Synonym Usage
See bundle.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
bunchsimple
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bunchessimple
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have bunchedperfect
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has bunchedperfect
-
am bunchingprogressive
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are bunchingprogressive
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is bunchingprogressive
-
have been bunchingperfect progressive
-
has been bunchingperfect progressive
Past
-
bunchedsimple
-
had bunchedperfect
-
was bunchingprogressive
-
were bunchingprogressive
-
had been bunchingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of bunch
1275–1325; Middle English bunche; of uncertain origin
Explanation
A group or cluster of something is a bunch. It could be a bunch of people or a bunch of grapes. If you pick a bunch of bananas, you might end up being followed by a bunch of monkeys. When you use the word bunch, you're generally talking about an approximate number of similar items, like a bunch of flowers or a bunch of cats or a bunch of your friends meeting for dinner. The verb bunch means "gather together," or "form into a bunch," the way you might bunch daisies together in a vase, or your socks might bunch down inside your boots.
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.
See Examples For:
With a price target of $9, Rusch is actually the least bullish of the bunch.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 25, 2026
"They'll be cryopreserved, so we can make a bunch of doses and give it to different patients," Sunwoo said.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 25, 2026
“It was surprisingly easy to convince a bunch of 20-year-old tech guys to live on my couch and build robots with me in Hawaii,” he said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 20, 2026
“Are we going to be building a bunch of stations when there are no vehicles?”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 17, 2026
He took off too fast with his soccer friends, but he faded big-time—a bunch of them did.
From "Keeping Pace" by Laurie Morrison
September carrots can look almost too virtuous at the farmers market: sturdy bunches, feathery green tops, dirt in the creases.
From Salon ● Aug. 16, 2026
Some stands sold small cartons of cherry tomatoes for $7, bunches of kale for $4 and a mixed-salad bag for $5.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 2, 2026
“Some people never watch their movies, which is shocking to me. I’ve seen all of my movies bunches of times. I’ve watched ‘Thelma & Louise’ dozens of times.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 13, 2026
They arrived to cheers from crowds waving Welsh flags and holding bunches of daffodils, before sipping hot drinks and chatting to people making signs, baking cakes and making traditional stew in preparation for the festivities.
From BBC ● Mar. 1, 2026
It was now slicked down into two bunches — perhaps he had tried a ponytail like Bill’s, but found he had too much hair.
From "Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire" by J. K. Rowling
An alternative Arctic route, the Northwest Passage that connects the Atlantic and Pacific oceans via the Canadian Arctic, is less passable because it is dominated by narrow waterways where ice gets bunched up.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 15, 2026
Cassidy, Trump-endorsed Rep. Julia Letlow, and state treasurer John Fleming have been relatively bunched in the polling.
From Slate ● May 16, 2026
"I feel like it's always very bunched here," said Canada's Taylor.
From Barron's ● Jan. 18, 2026
But he said spending was bunched in the last few weeks before Christmas, which was probably due to people waiting to see what was announced in the Budget.
From BBC ● Jan. 6, 2026
It was all mesarthium, smooth bunched muscle shaped for crouching and leaping.
From "Strange the Dreamer" by Laini Taylor
Even those who missed the boat on opening a DAF last year might find it useful for bunching deductions into one tax year.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 6, 2026
Charitable contributions and charitable bunching are other options, LeCong says.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 16, 2025
Then, it coils itself into a comma, bunching up its lower half.
From New York Times ● Jun. 20, 2024
This phenomenon is known as "bus bunching", and it can be annoying.
From BBC ● Jan. 17, 2024
He released her hand, his shoulders bunching, his gaze angry and ashamed as he turned his face to the sea.
From "Six of Crows" by Leigh Bardugo
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.
