multitude

American  

[muhl-ti-tood, -tyood] / ˈmʌl tɪˌtud, -ˌtyud /

noun

1. a great number; host.

   a multitude of friends.

2. a great number of people gathered together; crowd; throng.

   Synonyms:

   mass

3. the state or character of being many; numerousness.

4. the multitude, the common people; the masses.

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multitude British  

/ ˈmʌltɪˌtjuːd /

noun

1. a large gathering of people

2. the common people

3. a large number

4. the state or quality of being numerous

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Related Words

See crowd ¹.

Etymology

Origin of multitude

First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English word from Latin word multitūdō. See multi-, -tude

Example Sentences

One, because she’s been on the radar for years as just a multitude of things, she’s multifaceted: Teyana Taylor can dance, she can sing, she’s just all of that and now acting alongside Leonardo DiCaprio.

From Los Angeles Times

But the betting here is that a viewer will be preoccupied by thinking about the multitude of head injuries someone like Robby would encounter in the E.R., and why he doesn’t wear a helmet himself.

From The Wall Street Journal

Footballers across the globe will be hoping for a big year for a multitude of reasons.

From BBC

I can say, while at the CIA, we received overtures from industry in multitudes each day.

From The Wall Street Journal

They lost consecutive games for the first time Tuesday and limped into a marquee Christmas Day matchup against the Houston Rockets with a multitude of injuries.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• horde
• legion
• myriad
• slew
• throng