panoply

American  

[pan-uh-plee] / ˈpæn ə pli /

noun

• panoplies
  plural

1. a wide-ranging and impressive array or display.

   the dazzling panoply of the maharaja's procession; the panoply of European history.

2. a complete suit of armor.

3. a protective covering.

4. full ceremonial attire or paraphernalia; special dress and equipment.

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panoply British  

/ ˈpænəplɪ /

noun

1. a complete or magnificent array

2. the entire equipment of a warrior

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• panoplied
  adjective
• unpanoplied
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• panoplies
  plural

Etymology

Origin of panoply

1570–80; < Greek panoplía full complement of arms and armor, equivalent to pan- pan- + ( h ) ópl ( a ) arms, armor ( cf. hoplite) + -ia -ia

Explanation

A panoply is a collection or an assortment of things. You might be eager to show off your panoply of bobble-head dolls when friends come to your house. An array or display of things is a panoply, so you can show off your panoply of spooky clown paintings, but you can also display a panoply of dance moves or talk about the panoply of flags at the parade — as long as it's a complete or impressive display, it's a true panoply. In ancient Greece, the word was used exclusively to talk about military costumes which were always suits of armor.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

panoply panoplies

The drills have deployed a panoply of military hardware -- including tank formations and Russian-made Pantsir air-defence systems -- with over 25,000 troops, said General Omar Mrajah Al Jedid, the officer overseeing the exercises.

From Barron's ● May 17, 2026

After so many trips, he knows the crew, knows where the train will pause long enough for him to shave, knows he can count on chatting with “a whole panoply of folks every time.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 9, 2025

That meeting — set for Oct. 28-29 — comes at a time when the Federal Reserve has to decide on monetary policy without the full panoply of government data it would ordinarily rely on.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 27, 2025

There are a huge number of professionals from different disciplines: nutritionists, social workers, mental health specialists, along with the full panoply of medical staff.

From BBC ● Oct. 11, 2025

Inside, the tables have been pushed aside, and a panoply of people sit in a loose circle.

From "It’s Kind of a Funny Story" by Ned Vizzini

For better or for worse, Turkey became a republic, a midget of a state compared to its former self; all the old panoplies of government were thrown overboard.

From Time Magazine Archive

Some thirty pictures by the masters, uniformly framed and separated by gleaming panoplies of arms, adorned walls on which were stretched tapestries of austere design.

From Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea by F. P. Walter

It was shining in panoplies of smiles with the French after the attack of July 1st.

From My Second Year of the War by Frederick Palmer

Awake, do on your panoplies, shake your sceptres over the armied earth!

From The Life and Death of Richard Yea-and-Nay by Maurice Henry Hewlett

Under Philip's feet at last Writhed all the Protestant Netherlands, dim coasts Right over against us, whence his panoplies Might suddenly whelm our isle.

From Collected Poems Volume One by Alfred Noyes

Related Words

• array