multitude
Americannoun
-
multitudes
plural
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a great number; host.
a multitude of friends.
-
a great number of people gathered together; crowd; throng.
- Synonyms:
- mass
-
the state or character of being many; numerousness.
-
the multitude, the common people; the masses.
noun
-
a large gathering of people
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the common people
-
a large number
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the state or quality of being numerous
Synonym Usage
See crowd 1.
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of multitude
First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English word from Latin word multitūdō. See multi-, -tude
Explanation
A multitude is a very large number or a huge crowd. If you see a multitude of zombies approaching, you're in trouble. Sometimes the word multitude refers to the common people, or the masses — that is, everyone in a society apart from the political elite. There are a lot of words and phrases for this, like hoi polloi, which is Greek for "the many," and "the great unwashed." Those last two terms are usually used in a disapproving way, but multitudes is generally a positive term. If you were to say that a leader inspired the multitudes to rise up against their oppressor, we'd assume that you sympathized with the multitudes.
Vocabulary lists containing multitude
100 Words Every Middle Schooler Should Know
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Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
But with that said, Raigeul tells Realtor.com that the home would be a great fit “for a multitude of different buyers.”
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 21, 2026
Its multitude of brands like Pontiac and Saturn—reflective of the company’s longtime “a car for every purse and purpose” philosophy—sapped the bottom line.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 21, 2026
Enrollees can choose from a multitude of plans sponsored by insurance carriers, varying somewhat by the drugs covered and the premiums.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 4, 2026
Still, the results are likely to boost the multitude of lawsuits working their way through courts across the country.
From Barron's ● Jul. 16, 2026
High, low, from a multitude of separate throats, only two voices squeaked or growled.
From "Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley
The hilltop cemetery may be a resting place for multitudes, but it’s also a seemingly endless open-air sculpture museum.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 23, 2026
What’s more, you are also donating to a food bank to put food into the backpacks of multitudes of children.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 20, 2026
Perhaps because the multitudes derive pleasure from observing wealthy people getting dragged through the mud.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 1, 2026
In response to her complaints, the filing says, the company "retaliated against her, demonetizing her X account and generating multitudes more images of her".
From BBC ● Jan. 16, 2026
Forgive me, Africa, according to the multitudes of thy mercies.
From "The Poisonwood Bible" by Barbara Kingsolver
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
