mob

[ mob ]

/ mɒb /

Save This Word!

See synonyms for mob on Thesaurus.com

noun

a disorderly or riotous crowd of people.

a crowd bent on or engaged in lawless violence.

any group or collection of persons or things.

the common people; the masses; populace or multitude.

a criminal gang, especially one involved in drug trafficking, extortion, etc.

the Mob, Mafia (def. 1).

Sociology. a group of persons stimulating one another to excitement and losing ordinary rational control over their activity.

a flock, herd, or drove of animals: a mob of sheep.

adjective

of, relating to, or characteristic of a lawless, irrational, disorderly, or riotous crowd: mob rule; mob instincts.

directed at or reflecting the lowest intellectual level of the common people: mob appeal; the mob mentality.

verb (used with object), mobbed, mob·bing.

to crowd around noisily, as from curiosity or hostility: Spectators mobbed the courtroom.

to attack in a riotous mob: The crowd mobbed the consulate.

Fox Hunting. to chop (a fox).

QUIZ

WILL YOU SAIL OR STUMBLE ON THESE GRAMMAR QUESTIONS?

Smoothly step over to these common grammar mistakes that trip many people up. Good luck!

Question 1 of 7

Fill in the blank: I can’t figure out _____ gave me this gift.

who

whom

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of mob

First recorded in 1680–90; short for Latin mōbile vulgus “the movable (i.e., changeable, inconstant) common people”

OTHER WORDS FROM mob

mobber, mobbist, nounmobbish, adjectivemob·bish·ly, adverbmob·bish·ness, noun

mobbism, nounun·mobbed, adjective

Other definitions for mob (2 of 3)

mob²

[ mob mohb ]

/ mɒb moʊb /

noun Digital Technology.

(in a video game) a hostile nonplayer character that the player may target and fight.

Origin of mob

First recorded in 1980–85; coined by British video game developer Richard Bartle; shortening of mobile (in the sense “a moving sculpture hung from the ceiling”)

Other definitions for mob (3 of 3)

MOB

mother of the bride.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use mob in a sentence

They may come on as rugged individualists, but the giveaway is they’re always in shambling mobs looking for something to eat.
The thoughtless husks who plunged this NFL season into chaos deserve a public shaming|Sally Jenkins|December 2, 2020|Washington Post
A few hundred to a couple thousand members is usually good—once you get more than that, you have a large enough group where toxicity and mob mentality start to slowly take over.
Social media can be toxic. Here’s how to make sure your feeds aren’t.|Whitson Gordon|December 1, 2020|Popular-Science
“We can’t allow the Left-wing MOB to undermine our Election,” one missive says.
Georgia announces hand audit|Felicia Sonmez, Colby Itkowitz, John Wagner, Derek Hawkins|November 12, 2020|Washington Post
If you say the wrong thing, you get a Twitter mob after you, and the next thing you know, you might lose your job.
How to Succeed by Being Authentic (Hint: Carefully) (Ep. 438)|Stephen J. Dubner|November 5, 2020|Freakonomics

Even before greeting him, maybe to disarm the man after a span of two decades that felt like a span of two decades, I told him I was surprised that there was no mob around him.
Fiction: Quiet earth philosophy|Katie McLean|October 21, 2020|MIT Technology Review
Dozens of teenagers mobbing stores for a simultaneous shoplifting spree.
Criminal Flash Mobs. Apparently, That's a Thing Now.|Megan McArdle|February 26, 2013|DAILY BEAST
By the time she reached the parking lot, “people were just mobbing out of the mall.”
Gunman Kills Two People and Himself in Shooting at Oregon Mall|Winston Ross|December 12, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Yes, and if these mobbing knaves can be kept quiet then, we shall be in a situation to ask no favors.
The Rangers|D. P. Thompson
That night the sheriff called out a large number of men to prevent a set of scoundrels from Merced from mobbing me.
Hunted Down|Harry Granice
The little birds, impelled by rage or fear, or a silly combination of both, assemble for the purpose of mobbing the common enemy.
British Birds in their Haunts|Rev. C. A. Johns
The boys fought their way through the throngs that were almost mobbing them to get at the victorious girls.
The Meadow-Brook Girls on the Tennis Courts|Janet Aldridge
The disappointment of the Americans showed itself by mobbing some French seamen in Boston, whither their fleet retired.
Types of Naval Officers|A. T. Mahan

British Dictionary definitions for mob (1 of 2)

mob

/ (mɒb) /

noun

a riotous or disorderly crowd of people; rabble
(as modifier)mob law; mob violence

often derogatory a group or class of people, animals, or things

Australian and NZ a flock (of sheep) or a herd (of cattle, esp when droving)

often derogatory the masses

slang a gang of criminals

verb mobs, mobbing or mobbed (tr)

to attack in a group resembling a mob

to surround, esp in order to acclaimthey mobbed the film star

to crowd into (a building, plaza, etc)

(of a group of animals of a prey species) to harass (a predator)

Derived forms of mob

mobber, nounmobbish, adjective

Word Origin for mob

C17: shortened from Latin mōbile vulgus the fickle populace; see mobile

British Dictionary definitions for mob (2 of 2)

MOB

abbreviation for

mobile phone

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

mob

Origin of mob

OTHER WORDS FROM mob

Other definitions for mob (2 of 3)

Origin of mob

Other definitions for mob (3 of 3)

Words related to mob

How to use mob in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for mob (1 of 2)

Derived forms of mob

Word Origin for mob

British Dictionary definitions for mob (2 of 2)