crowd

¹

[kroud]

noun

1. a large number of persons gathered closely together; throng.

   a crowd of angry people.

2. any large number of persons.

3. any group or set of persons with something in common.

   The restaurant attracts a theater crowd.

4. audience; attendance.

   Opening night drew a good crowd.

5. the common people; the masses.

   He feels superior to the crowd.

   Synonyms: populace, plebeians, proletariat

6. a large number of things gathered or considered together.

7. Sociology.,  a temporary gathering of people responding to common stimuli and engaged in any of various forms of collective behavior.

verb (used without object)

1. to gather in large numbers; throng; swarm.

   Synonyms: thrust, drive, herd, assemble

2. to press forward; advance by pushing.

verb (used with object)

1. to press closely together; force into a confined space; cram.

   to crowd clothes into a suitcase.

2. to push; shove.

3. to fill to excess; fill by pressing or thronging into.

4. to place under pressure or stress by constant solicitation.

   to crowd a debtor for payment; to crowd someone with embarrassing questions.

crowd

²

Also crwth
Also

[kroud]

noun

Music.

1. an ancient Celtic musical instrument with the strings stretched over a rectangular frame, played with a bow.

crowd

¹

/ kraʊd /

noun

1. a large number of things or people gathered or considered together

2. a particular group of people, esp considered as a social or business set

   the crowd from the office

3. 1. the common people; the masses

   2. ( as modifier )

      crowd ideas

4. to conform with the majority

verb

1. (intr) to gather together in large numbers; throng

2. (tr) to press together into a confined space

3. (tr) to fill to excess; fill by pushing into

4. informal,  (tr) to urge or harass by urging

5. nautical to hoist as much sail as possible

crowd

²

/ kraʊd /

noun

1. music an ancient bowed stringed instrument; crwth

Grammar Note

See collective noun.

Other Word Forms

• crowder noun
• crowdedly adverb
• crowded adjective
• crowdedness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of crowd¹

First recorded before 950; Middle English verb crouden, cruden, croden, Old English crūdan, crēodan “to press, hurry”; cognate with Middle Dutch crūden “to push,” Middle Low German krūden to annoy”

Origin of crowd²

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English croud, crouth, from Welsh crwth; crwth

Word History and Origins

Origin of crowd¹

Old English crūdan; related to Middle Low German krūden to molest, Middle Dutch crūden to push, Norwegian kryda to swarm

Origin of crowd²

C13: from Welsh crwth

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. crowd on sail, to carry a press of sail.

see follow the crowd; three's a crowd.

Synonym Study

Crowd, multitude, swarm, throng refer to large numbers of people. Crowd suggests a jostling, uncomfortable, and possibly disorderly company: A crowd gathered to listen to the speech. Multitude emphasizes the great number of persons or things but suggests that there is space enough for all: a multitude of people at the market on Saturdays. Swarm as used of people is usually contemptuous, suggesting a moving, restless, often noisy, crowd: A swarm of dirty children played in the street. Throng suggests a company that presses together or forward, often with some common aim: The throng pushed forward to see the cause of the excitement.

Example Sentences

Now the Tories have revealed further details of their plans to ditch green energy rules, as they join an increasingly crowded field of promises between the political parties over how to keep family bills down.

From BBC

Members of the crowd shouted "shame on you" as Swinney said he stood with them in remembering those who died when Hamas launched a series of attacks on Israel in 2023.

From BBC

Egged on by a gathered crowd, he then scaled a nearby school attended by children with special educational needs and disabilities, which suffered damage.

From BBC

Sharone Lifschitz, whose parents were taken hostage from their home in the attacks, told the crowd it was almost two years "since our lives were torn apart".

From BBC

Over the years, Frame has built out event programming and become a destination for the arts and culture crowd.

From Salon

Related Words

• cluster 
• congest 
• congregate 
• deluge 
• flock 
• gather 
• huddle 
• overcrowd 
• pack 
• pile 
• squeeze 
• stream 
• swamp 
• swarm 
• throng 

When To Use

What is a basic definition of crowd?

A crowd is a large group of people or an audience. Crowd also means to cram closely together. Crowd has several other senses as a noun and a verb.The word crowd can be used to describe any large group of people. Often, crowd is used to specifically mean that the people are standing close together. If a location has a large number of people in a small area, it is said to be crowded.

• Real-life examples: A protest often involves a crowd of angry people. Crowds are often broken up when they get too large and unruly. You are very likely to see huge crowds in large cities like Los Angeles or in popular amusement parks like Disney World.



• Used in a sentence: My sister got lost in the crowd of businesspeople boarding the subway car. 

In this sense, crowd is used as a verb to mean to gather together in large numbers.

• Used in a sentence: We crowded around the trained monkey to watch it dance. 

Crowd is also used to mean an audience, even if not many people are in the audience.

• Real-life examples: Musicians, circus performers, actors, and comedians perform in front of a crowd. Politicians often give speeches to a crowd. Every producer wants to attract a large crowd to a show so they make more money.



• Used in a sentence: She received a standing ovation from the crowd. 

Crowd can also specifically mean a group of people who have something in common.

• Used in a sentence: I don’t really fit in with this artsy crowd. 

As a verb, crowd means to pack or cram closely together in a tight space.

• Used in a sentence: Twelve clowns crowded into the tiny car.