en masse
[ahn mas, en; French ahn mas]
- in a mass; all together; as a group: The people rushed to the gate en masse.
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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. 2018
Examples from the Web for en masse
Historical Examples
It was mass production—you did things by rote, en-masse—no individuality.
David Lannarck, MidgetGeorge S. Harney
en masse
- in a group, body, or mass; as a whole; all together
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Word Origin
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
Word Origin and History for en masse
French, literally "in mass."
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
en masse
[(ahn mas)]
A French phrase meaning “in a large body”: “The protesters left en masse for the White House.”
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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.
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The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.