cluster

American  

[kluhs-ter] / ˈklʌs tər /

noun

• clusters
  plural

1. a number of things of the same kind, growing or held together; a bunch.

   a cluster of grapes.

2. a group of things or persons close together.

   There was a cluster of tourists at the gate.

3. U.S. Army. a small metal design placed on a ribbon representing an awarded medal to indicate that the same medal has been awarded again.

   oak-leaf cluster.

4. Phonetics. a succession of two or more contiguous consonants in an utterance, as the str- cluster of strap.

5. Astronomy. a group of neighboring stars, held together by mutual gravitation, that have essentially the same age and composition and thus supposedly a common origin.

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verb (used with object)

• clusters,
  present (3rd person singular)
• clustered,
  past participle,  past
• clustering
  present participle

1. to gather into a cluster or clusters.

2. to furnish or cover with clusters.

verb (used without object)

• clusters,
  present (3rd person singular)
• clustered,
  past participle,  past
• clustering
  present participle

1. to form a cluster or clusters.

   The people clustered around to watch.

   Synonyms:

   bunch, crowd, throng, gather, group

cluster British  

/ ˈklʌstə /

noun

1. a number of things growing, fastened, or occurring close together

2. a number of persons or things grouped together

3. military a metal insignia worn on a medal ribbon to indicate a second award or a higher class of a decoration or order

4. military

   1. a group of bombs dropped in one stick, esp fragmentation and incendiary bombs

   2. the basic unit of mines used in laying a minefield

5. astronomy an aggregation of stars or galaxies moving together through space

6. a group of two or more consecutive vowels or consonants

7. statistics a naturally occurring subgroup of a population used in stratified sampling

8. chem

   1. a chemical compound or molecule containing groups of metal atoms joined by metal-to-metal bonds

   2. the group of linked metal atoms present

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verb

1. to gather or be gathered in clusters

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• subcluster
  noun
• clustered
  adjective
• clustery
  adjective
• intercluster
  adjective
• unclustered
  adjective
• unclustering
  adjective
• clusteringly
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• clusters
  plural

Participles

• clustering
  present
• clustered
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• cluster
  simple
• clusters
  simple
• have clustered
  perfect
• has clustered
  perfect
• am clustering
  progressive
• are clustering
  progressive
• is clustering
  progressive
• have been clustering
  perfect progressive
• has been clustering
  perfect progressive

Past

• clustered
  simple
• had clustered
  perfect
• was clustering
  progressive
• were clustering
  progressive
• had been clustering
  perfect progressive

Future

• will cluster
  simple
• will have clustered
  perfect
• will be clustering
  progressive
• will have been clustering
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of cluster

before 900; Middle English; Old English cluster, clyster bunch; cognate with Low German kluster

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Explanation

A cluster is a small group of people or things. When you and your friends huddle awkwardly around the snack table at a party, whispering and trying to muster enough nerve to hit the dance floor, you’ve formed a cluster. Cluster comes to us from the Old English word clyster, meaning bunch. Nowadays, you can use cluster as either a noun or a verb. When we were kids, we would stand in a cluster (noun) on the street corner, eagerly awaiting the appearance of the Good Humor truck every afternoon. Then we would cluster (verb) eagerly around the driver, demanding ice cream. Virtually anything can form a cluster — flowers, cells, stars, human beings, and even events.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

cluster clusters clustered clustering

The cluster led by Artemis Technologies, will connect electric vessels, high-power marine charging, autonomous transport and energy systems through secure digital twin technology.

From BBC ● Oct. 15, 2026

Europe’s largest cluster of data centers is in Slough, a town 25 miles west of London, with only Virginia in the U.S. boasting more globally.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026

"XLSSC 122 has now set the record for the most distant galaxy cluster displaying strong lensing, which is a valuable tool for astronomers."

From Science Daily ● Oct. 13, 2026

A massive galaxy cluster dating back to an era when such enormous structures were only beginning to take shape is challenging scientists' understanding of how the universe evolved.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 13, 2026

Owen quickly steered them to a cluster of rocks, and they slumped against them.

From "Two Degrees" by Alan Gratz

The proposed changes cover 23 AI-related technologies such as large language models, AI agents, chip design and computing clusters.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026

But as service requests from large customers tripled to 18,000 megawatts, the company started to study potential projects in clusters to see how they would collectively affect the grid.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 13, 2026

Researchers from dTeam, a US-based group that tracks Moscow-linked influence operations, told BBC Verify there has not been "any traffic change from known Russian accounts and bot clusters on any platform".

From BBC ● Oct. 13, 2026

The BBC showed photographs from the scene to forensics and ballistics experts, who said that the clusters suggested multiple rounds had been fired downward from above, and did not appear indicative of a firefight.

From BBC ● Oct. 13, 2026

The altar was adorned with thick, fragrant clusters of flowers illuminated by the slender white stemmed candles that burned from six candelabra.

From "The Great Santini" by Pat Conroy

Photos showed how the endangered moths clustered together so densely inside their caves, it was impossible to see the rock beneath.

From Barron's ● Oct. 2, 2026

Because of this dynamic, major gifts to colleges are often clustered around prominent schools.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 30, 2026

Last year, the city awarded $360.9 million to 80 projects that promise the construction of 1,288 new affordable units and the preservation of 3,713 units, mostly clustered around downtown L.A.,

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 23, 2026

Timure, the small trading settlement clustered around the crossing, was devastated.

From BBC ● Sep. 1, 2026

It was breathtaking, seeing those animals clustered on the trees, their shimmering wings all fluttery.

From "Willodeen" by Katherine Applegate

This includes clustering around the ball, attracting pressure, before looking to find players in space quickly.

From BBC ● Sep. 13, 2026

The clustering of buildings in areas such as Virginia’s “data center alley” means a single event—such as a tornado—can trigger multiple major claims.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 5, 2026

It also underwent a store refresh program, changing products and is clustering locations to boost profit and customer traffic.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 15, 2026

In dwarf galaxies, the process creates dark matter cores with relatively low central densities, matching recent observations of galaxy clustering.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 14, 2026

Its chief village was Bucklebury, clustering in the banks and slopes behind Brandy Hall.

From "The Fellowship of the Ring" by J.R.R. Tolkien

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Related Words

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