congregate

American  

[kong-gri-geyt, kong-gri-git, -geyt] / ˈkɒŋ grɪˌgeɪt, ˈkɒŋ grɪ gɪt, -ˌgeɪt /

verb (used without object)

congregated, congregating

1. to come together; assemble, especially in large numbers.

   People waiting for rooms congregated in the hotel lobby.

   Synonyms:

   cluster, throng, collect, gather

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verb (used with object)

congregated, congregating

1. to bring together in a crowd, body, or mass; assemble; collect.

adjective

1. congregated; assembled.

2. formed by collecting; collective.

congregate British  

verb

1. to collect together in a body or crowd; assemble

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adjective

1. collected together; assembled

2. relating to collecting; collective

Other Word Forms

• congregative adjective
• congregativeness noun
• congregator noun
• decongregate verb
• noncongregative adjective
• uncongregated adjective
• uncongregative adjective

Etymology

Origin of congregate

1350–1400; Middle English (adj.) < Latin congregātus (past participle of congregāre to flock together), equivalent to con- con- + greg- (stem of grex ) flock + -ātus -ate ¹

Example Sentences

Demonstrators congregated in front of the federal building, many of them chanting, “The people united will never be defeated.”

From Los Angeles Times

"We really strongly advocate that nobody swim or surf near river mouths because it's obviously an area where sharks congregate," Pearce said.

From BBC

Glasner congregated all his players and staff at the club's training ground just before noon on Friday.

From BBC

Mullen said she is "constantly worried", fearing that rats will get into her home, and said she dreads every time she has to take the bins out as rats congregate nearby.

From BBC

In Altadena, survivors congregated at the Eaton Fire Collaborative’s community center with a clear message: They were not backing down in the fight to return home.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• bunch up
• converge
• flock
• gather
• swarm
• throng