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• host
  host

  noun

  a person who receives or entertains guests at home or elsewhere.
• Host
  Host

  noun

  the bread or wafer consecrated in the celebration of the Eucharist.

host

¹ American  

[hohst] / hoʊst /

noun

1. a person who receives or entertains guests at home or elsewhere.

   Who was the host at last night's dinner party?

2. a master of ceremonies, moderator, or interviewer for a television or radio program, podcast, online chat space, or the like.

3. a city, country, company, or the like that provides services and resources for a convention or sporting event, visiting personnel, etc..

   Our city is proposing to serve as host for the Winter Olympics.

4. the owner or manager of an inn, bed-and-breakfast, restaurant, etc.

5. Computers, Digital Technology.

   1. Also called host computer.  a computer, often a mainframe, that stores, maintains, or controls access to a database, application, printer, etc., for other computers through a network connection; server.

      The new data should be rapidly uploadable from the terminal to the host.

   2. an organization that maintains, controls, or provides access to a website, email service, etc., via the internet.

   3. someone who initiates a computer game, videoconference, or the like on their computer or device, inviting and allowing others to participate on their own devices and sometimes controlling certain aspects of the event.

      Once you’ve logged in to the meeting with the password, wait for the host to admit you.

6. Biology. a living organism that is the source of nutrition for a parasite or that is the dominant partner in a symbiotic relationship with another organism.

   The virus uses the host’s cellular machinery for several steps of its life cycle.

7. Surgery. the recipient of a graft or of a transplanted organ, tissue, etc.

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adjective

1. relating to or being a city, country, company, or the like that provides services and resources for a convention or sporting event, visiting personnel, etc..

   International aid organizations must follow the laws and advisories of each host country where they work.

2. Computers, Digital Technology. relating to or being a computer that stores, maintains, or controls access to a database, application, printer, etc., for other computers through a network connection.

   The host PC runs the company’s documentation software, but employees can download and upload the files from their own computers.

3. Biology. relating to or being a living organism that is the source of nutrition for a parasite or that is the dominant partner in a symbiotic relationship with another organism.

   Exposure to altitude may disrupt the symbiosis between the host animal and its normal intestinal flora.

verb (used with object)

• hosts,
  present (3rd person singular)
• hosted,
  past participle,  past
• hosting
  present participle

1. to provide or arrange the venue for or receive guests at (a dinner, reception, etc.).

   He hosted a reception for new members.

2. to receive and entertain (one or more guests).

   The vice president hosted the foreign dignitaries during their visit.

3. to act as master of ceremonies, moderator, or interviewer for.

   She hosts a popular talk show.

4. Computers, Digital Technology.

   1. (of a computer) to store, maintain, or control (a database, application, printer, etc.) to which other computers have access through a network connection.

      The office server hosts the entire integrated sales and inventory system for all the workstations.

   2. to maintain or control and provide access to (a website, email service, etc.) via the internet.

      Who hosts your website, and how much do they charge?

   3. to initiate (a computer game, videoconference, or the like) on one’s computer or device, inviting and allowing others to participate on their own devices and sometimes controlling certain aspects of the event.

      I'm hosting a multiplayer game tonight if you want to join.

verb (used without object)

• hosts,
  present (3rd person singular)
• hosted,
  past participle,  past
• hosting
  present participle

1. to act as host, as for a social event, radio program, videoconference, etc..

   Last Thanksgiving was at my place, so I think it’s your turn to host this year.

   She won’t be here for our weekly virtual meeting, so I’m hosting instead.

host ² American  

[hohst] / hoʊst /

noun

1. a multitude or great number of persons or things.

   a host of details.

   Synonyms:

   myriad, horde, throng, drove, crowd, swarm

2. an army.

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Host ³ American  

[hohst] / hoʊst /

noun

Ecclesiastical.

1. the bread or wafer consecrated in the celebration of the Eucharist.

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host ¹ British  

/ həʊst /

noun

1. a great number; multitude

2. an archaic word for army

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Host ² British  

/ həʊst /

noun

1. the bread consecrated in the Eucharist

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host ³ British  

/ həʊst /

noun

1. a person who receives or entertains guests, esp in his own home

2. 1. a country or organization which provides facilities for and receives visitors to an event

   2. ( as modifier )

      the host nation

3. the compere of a show or television programme

4. biology

   1. an animal or plant that nourishes and supports a parasite

   2. an animal, esp an embryo, into which tissue is experimentally grafted

5. computing a computer connected to a network and providing facilities to other computers and their users

6. the owner or manager of an inn

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verb

1. to be the host of (a party, programme, etc)

   to host one's own show

2. informal (tr) to leave (a restaurant) without paying the bill

host Scientific  

/ hōst /

1. 1. The larger of two organisms in a symbiotic relationship.

   2. An organism or cell on or in which a parasite lives or feeds. ◆ A definitive host is an organism in which a parasite reaches sexual maturity. The anopheles mosquito is the definitive host for the malaria plasmodium because, while the mosquito is not adversely affected by the plasmodium's presence, it is the organism in which the plasmodium matures and reproduces. ◆ An intermediate host is an organism in which a parasite develops but does not attain sexual maturity. Humans and certain other vertebrates are the intermediate host of the malaria plasmodium. ◆ A paratenic host is an organism which may be required for the completion of a parasite's life cycle but in which no development of the parasite occurs. The unhatched eggs of nematodes are sometimes carried in a paratenic host such as a bird or rodent. When a predator eats the paratenic host, the eggs are ingested as well.

2. The recipient of a transplanted tissue or organ.

3. A computer containing data or programs that another computer can access by means of a network or modem.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• hostship
  noun
• hostless
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• hosting
  present
• hosted
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• host
  simple
• hosts
  simple
• have hosted
  perfect
• has hosted
  perfect
• am hosting
  progressive
• are hosting
  progressive
• is hosting
  progressive
• have been hosting
  perfect progressive
• has been hosting
  perfect progressive

Past

• hosted
  simple
• had hosted
  perfect
• was hosting
  progressive
• were hosting
  progressive
• had been hosting
  perfect progressive

Future

• will host
  simple
• will have hosted
  perfect
• will be hosting
  progressive
• will have been hosting
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of host¹

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English noun (h)oste, ost(e), from Old French (h)oste, from Latin hospit-, stem of hospes “host, guest, stranger,” perhaps from hosti-pot(i)s or hos-pot(i)s (unrecorded) “one granting hospitality, one in charge of guests,” from hostis “foreigner, stranger, enemy” + -pot(is), suffix akin to adjective potis “having the power to” ( see potent ¹); see also hospodar ( def. )

Origin of host²

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English (h)oste, ost(e), from Old French, from Latin hostis “stranger, enemy”; akin to guest; cf. host ¹ ( def. )

Origin of Host³

1275–1325; Middle English hoste < Late Latin hostia Eucharistic wafer ( Latin: victim, sacrifice); replacing Middle English oyst < Middle French oiste < Late Latin, as above

Explanation

If you've invited people over, offered to entertain, or let someone crash on your couch, then you're a host. Throw a fabulous party and you’ll be everyone’s favorite host. Do it when you're also hosting pneumonia germs, and your guests won't be so grateful. The noun host refers to a person who receives and entertains guests. But hosting also has an ickier side: In biology, a host is an animal, plant or person that provides a home for another organism — like a parasite. Host also functions as a noun, meaning a multitude, horde, or great number. As in, "You will pick up a host of funky germs from drinking the water in rural India."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

host Host hosts hosted hosting

Next week, host Susan Matthews joins Amicus co-hosts Dahlia Lithwick and Mark Joseph Stern to discuss the blockbuster decisions handed down in June—and Gorsuch’s role in them.

From Slate ● Aug. 22, 2026

Once injected, the LNPs protect the mRNA as it enters host cells.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 22, 2026

Is Los Angeles ready to host the Paralympics?

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2026

But this government-run primary school for girls in Faridabad, a district on the outskirts of the Indian capital Delhi, suffers from a host of problems.

From BBC ● Aug. 21, 2026

“Okay, Sunny Brook, here is your second-to-last question,” said the host.

From "The Smartest Kid in the Universe" by Chris Grabenstein

Host President Emmanuel Macron wants to advance a packed agenda of sensitive topics ranging from limiting global economic imbalances to increasing control in the digital sphere, notably AI.

From Barron's ● Jun. 15, 2026

Host Hotels & Resorts, which has properties in 10 U.S.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 8, 2026

Cauich: Host nations have a history of overachieving, and this World Cup likely will be no different.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 7, 2026

Hodgett reported that he “received an invitation from The National Prayer Breakfast Host Committee.”

From Salon ● May 29, 2026

We had been told to take the Host carefully in our tongue and swallow it immediately.

From "Bless Me, Ultima" by Rudolfo Anaya

When he’s not getting into it with CNN personality Scott Jennings, the 23-year-old hosts the podcast The Adam Mockler Show and runs a popular YouTube channel.

From Slate ● Aug. 19, 2026

The finale in America - the hosts of the 2031 World Cup - indicates that is the goal.

From BBC ● Aug. 17, 2026

Endorphins Running, which I run with, started in 2022 in New York City before expanding to other cities, including Los Angeles, where it hosts runs twice a week in Santa Monica.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 17, 2026

It hosts 60 percent of all internally displaced people in Yemen, according to the International Organization for Migration.

From Barron's ● Aug. 16, 2026

Across the Seine, the newly built Palais du Trocadero hosts art exhibits, concerts, and meetings.

From "Vincent and Theo: The Van Gogh Brothers" by Deborah Heiligman

Though SeaWorld has hosted the event since 2019, it’s taken years to find the right formula and the concert series has only recently taken off.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2026

Race director Tom Keogh said: "We do not take this lightly. We hosted the nation's best athletes and their finishing times did not truly reflect their amazing performances."

From BBC ● Aug. 20, 2026

The world’s largest digital asset hit its highest level since June after the president hosted a pro-crypto rally at the White House.

From Barron's ● Aug. 20, 2026

After an outcry, the company met with a number of local residents and hosted its own open house, Roger Wehner, vice president of economic development at Amazon Web Services, said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 2026

She’s going to be a contestant on The $20,000 Pyramid, which is hosted by Dick Clark.

From "When You Reach Me" by Rebecca Stead

It was put to Root that Australia would be unlikely to give up the advantage of hosting England at their most successful venues when the urn is contested down under.

From BBC ● Aug. 21, 2026

In time, other towns began hosting and the competitions became local front-page news.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 21, 2026

O’Donnell has explicitly framed her Kimmel hosting role as solidarity with the late-night community and a defense of First Amendment rights.

From Salon ● Aug. 20, 2026

Australia's Defence Minister Richard Marles, hosting his Japanese counterpart, said Canberra was "very concerned about North Korea's nuclear programme as well as its missile programme".

From Barron's ● Aug. 18, 2026

Finally, when a charming woman had invited them to a dance competition she was hosting, they’d jumped at the opportunity.

From "Shooting Kabul" by N. H. Senzai

Related Words

• anchor
• entertainer
• manager
• moderator
• owner
• presenter