stampede

American  

[stam-peed] / stæmˈpid /

noun

• stampedes
  plural

1. a sudden, frenzied rush or headlong flight of a herd of frightened animals, especially cattle or horses.

2. any headlong general flight or rush.

3. Western U.S., Canada. a celebration, usually held annually, combining a rodeo, contests, exhibitions, dancing, etc.

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verb (used without object)

• stampedes,
  present (3rd person singular)
• stampeded,
  past participle,  past
• stampeding
  present participle

1. to scatter or flee in a stampede.

   People stampeded from the burning theater.

2. to make a general rush.

   On hearing of the sale, they stampeded to the store.

verb (used with object)

• stampedes,
  present (3rd person singular)
• stampeded,
  past participle,  past
• stampeding
  present participle

1. to cause to stampede.

2. to rush or overrun (a place).

   Customers stampeded the stores.

stampede British  

/ stæmˈpiːd /

noun

1. an impulsive headlong rush of startled cattle or horses

2. headlong rush of a crowd

   a stampede of shoppers

3. any sudden large-scale movement or other action, such as a rush of people to support a candidate

4. a rodeo event featuring fairground and social elements

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verb

1. to run away or cause to run away in a stampede

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• stampeder
  noun
• unstampeded
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• stampedes
  plural

Participles

• stampeding
  present
• stampeded
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• stampede
  simple
• stampedes
  simple
• have stampeded
  perfect
• has stampeded
  perfect
• am stampeding
  progressive
• are stampeding
  progressive
• is stampeding
  progressive
• have been stampeding
  perfect progressive
• has been stampeding
  perfect progressive

Past

• stampeded
  simple
• had stampeded
  perfect
• was stampeding
  progressive
• were stampeding
  progressive
• had been stampeding
  perfect progressive

Future

• will stampede
  simple
• will have stampeded
  perfect
• will be stampeding
  progressive
• will have been stampeding
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of stampede

An Americanism first recorded in 1815–25; from Spanish estampida, equivalent to estamp(ar) “to stamp” + -ida noun suffix

Explanation

Do you see hundreds of cattle thundering toward you? Then stop reading and get out of there! A stampede is coming. Stampede is a word for animal behavior that fits people sometimes too. During the holidays, desperate parents might stampede the mall, especially the toy stores. Fans of a popular movie might stampede to get tickets. A stampede of teen girls can usually be found chasing the latest boy bands. Stampede can be a noun or a verb, but either way, look out!

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

stampede stampedes stampeded stampeding

The tragedy follows a similar fire in Kinshasa last weekend, where residents died in a stampede at a wedding banquet hall.

From BBC ● Sep. 10, 2026

On one hand, it’s nice to see young Brian scamper up to his bedroom to crack open an encyclopedia or hear a herd of theropods stampede on the roof of an all-metal car.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026

In the biography “Mick Jagger,” author Philip Norman described it as “a veritable stampede to the altar.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 28, 2026

Then, right behind them, a stampede of men in UFC T-shirts: the Running of the Bros.

From Slate ● Jun. 16, 2026

Having heard my story, Charlie looks not in the least bit shocked or judgmental, and my relief is so great that when I finish telling him about the stampede, I keep going.

From "Water for Elephants" by Sara Gruen

The stampedes have been so intense that a number have been forced to institute caps on daily withdrawals.

From MarketWatch ● Mar. 12, 2026

Deadly stampedes and crowd crushes are a common occurrence at big Indian gatherings and religious festivals.

From Barron's ● Nov. 1, 2025

The deafening roar of the aircraft startled nearby livestock, sending cattle into panicked stampedes.

From BBC ● Mar. 23, 2025

Human nature hasn’t changed enough since then to shield masses of people from being seduced and intimidated into servility and herd-like stampedes.

From Salon ● Feb. 17, 2025

Anger stampedes through me, hot and lively, and the muffled feeling around my ears falls away, making even this quiet Abnegation street sound loud.

From "Allegiant" by Veronica Roth

Consumers have stampeded toward protein, and food-industry giants are chasing them with new product innovations.

From MarketWatch ● May 5, 2026

Attendees stampeded, pushing and shoving and yelling as if there were one cake, not 1,000.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 29, 2025

“Zootopia 2” has already stampeded past $1 billion to surpass its predecessor, and the awards nominations have just begun slithering in.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 23, 2025

“All people are fallible, even a great president like Roosevelt. He got stampeded by the hysteria of the time, the racism of the time. And he signed Executive Order 9066,” Takei said.

From Seattle Times ● May 29, 2024

The bus driver was the first one out, the passengers yelling as they stampeded after him.

From "The Lightning Thief" by Rick Riordan

Even the adults are too absorbed by their screens to notice a herd of dolls stampeding through a house.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 18, 2026

The turmoil currently sweeping through the $3 trillion private credit market has investors stampeding out of the funds.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 12, 2026

For both England Under-20s and Sale's senior side, his stampeding line breaks have become a familiar sight.

From BBC ● Nov. 8, 2024

The thud snapped Seattle’s streak of six consecutive series wins, as the Mariners dropped three of four to a stampeding Twins team that has won 15 of their last 17 games.

From Seattle Times ● May 9, 2024

We stop short of stampeding Jack Kang and the group of Candor that followed him here.

From "Insurgent" by Veronica Roth

Related Words

• panic