multiple

American  

[muhl-tuh-puhl] / ˈmʌl tə pəl /

adjective

1. consisting of, having, or involving several or many individuals, parts, elements, relations, etc.; manifold.

2. Electricity.

   1. (of circuits) arranged in parallel.

   2. (of a circuit or circuits) having a number of points at which connection can be made.

3. Botany. (of a fruit) collective.

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noun

multiples plural

1. Mathematics. a number that contains another number an integral number of times without a remainder.

   12 is a multiple of 3.

2. Electricity. a group of terminals arranged to make a circuit or group of circuits accessible at a number of points at any one of which connection can be made.

multiple British  

/ ˈmʌltɪpəl /

adjective

1. having or involving more than one part, individual, etc

   he had multiple injuries

2. electronics (of a circuit) having a number of conductors in parallel

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noun

1. the product of a given number or polynomial and any other one

   6 is a multiple of 2

2. telephony an electrical circuit accessible at a number of points to any one of which a connection can be made

3. short for multiple store

multiple Scientific  

/ mŭl′tə-pəl /

1. A number that may be divided by another number with no remainder. For example, 4, 10, and 32 are multiples of 2.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonmultiple
  adjective
• multiply
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• multiples
  plural

Etymology

Origin of multiple

First recorded in 1570–80; from French, from Late Latin multiplus “manifold”; see multi-

Explanation

When you're talking about more than one, you're talking about multiple things. A machine with many fixtures has multiple parts. A person that seems like two totally different people on different days might have multiple personalities. The word multiple comes from the Latin multiplus meaning "manifold." When something exists in multiple forms, it's manifold, or has many kinds. Think of a multiplex theater that can show multiple movies at once. Walk through a garden full of flowers and you'll see multiple kinds of blooms. A multiple is also a number that can be divided into another number without a remainder. Multiples of five, for example are ten, fifteen, twenty... — you get the picture.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

multiple multiples

He claims some worked between 12 to 17 hours a day "over multiple months" to get the downloadable update out of the door.

From BBC ● Jul. 15, 2026

They added that the article had gone through extensive research and verification, and its reporter had sought comment from the ministers multiple times.

From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2026

Despite his experience and the multiple outbreaks in other parts of the U.S.,

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 14, 2026

Piper Sandler’s analysts estimated that rising earnings contributed about 18.5 percentage points to that return, while a shrinking price-to-earnings multiple subtracted nearly 8 percentage points.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 14, 2026

He lost or drew to some of the “smallfry,” including multiple players from Argentina, Hungary, and Czechoslovakia.

From "Endgame" by Frank Brady

Paying peak multiples for “proven” assets is another mistake, says Ablin.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026

Even when looking at stock multiples, Salesforce’s is “low” but not “bottom of the barrel” for the software sector, according to Ader.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 9, 2026

That kind of headwind isn’t reflected in tech’s current sky-high multiples.

From Barron's ● Jun. 30, 2026

The analysts think PDD and Meituan are now trading near their five-year trough multiples.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 29, 2026

Then you take away all the numbers that are multiples of 3.

From "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time" by Mark Haddon

Related Words

• different
• numerous
• various