the masses

Idioms  

1. The body of common people, or people of low socioeconomic status, as in TV sitcoms are designed to appeal to the masses. This idiom is nearly always used in a snobbish context that puts down the taste, intelligence, or some other quality of the majority of people. W.S. Gilbert satirized this view in the peers' march in Iolanthe (1882), in which the lower-middle class and the masses are ordered to bow down before the peers. Prime Minister William Gladstone took a different view (Speech, 1886): “All the world over, I will back the masses against the [upper] classes.” [First half of 1800s]

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

the masses

After 20 minutes, they found a spot — and joined the masses.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 21, 2026

Future observations will measure the masses of their black holes, analyze the chemistry of the surrounding gas, and use their light to trace how reionization unfolded across the young universe.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 9, 2026

The more the traditional studios get taken over and reimagined by the tech world, the fewer stories we’ll see greenlit and created for the masses.

From Slate ● Jul. 2, 2026

In brilliantly composed black-and-white photography, Vidor offers a drama on the psychology of American individualism in an age increasingly defined by the masses.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 24, 2026

In the time it took my stunned self to glance up at the clock, the masses of students around me had disappeared.

From "A Very Large Expanse of Sea" by Tahereh Mafi