en masse
[ ahn mas, en; French ahn mas ]
/ ɑn ˈmæs, ɛn; French ɑ̃ ˈmas /
adverb
in a mass; all together; as a group: The people rushed to the gate en masse.
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What Are En Dashes?You don’t hear as much about them as other dashes, but you’ve most likely seen them around. En dashes (–) can denote a range or connect the endpoints of a route. They can also show a contrast or connection between two words. You can use them to replace the words to, and, or versus. An en dash is longer than a hyphen (–) and shorter …
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Nearby words
en déshabillé, en face, en famille, en fête, en garde, en masse, en papillote, en passant, en pension, en plein, en plein air
Origin of en masse
Borrowed into English from French around 1795–1805
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for en masse
It was mass production—you did things by rote, en-masse—no individuality.
David Lannarck, Midget|George S. Harney
British Dictionary definitions for en masse
en masse
/ (French ɑ̃ mas) /
adverb
in a group, body, or mass; as a whole; all together
Word Origin for en masse
C19: from French
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Culture definitions for en masse
en masse
[ (ahn mas) ]
A French phrase meaning “in a large body”: “The protesters left en masse for the White House.”
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Idioms and Phrases with en masse
en masse
In one group or body; all together. For example, The activists marched en masse to the capitol. This French term, with exactly the same meaning, was adopted into English about 1800.
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.