throng

[thrawng, throng]

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noun

a multitude of people crowded or assembled together; crowd.
a great number of things crowded or considered together: a throng of memories.
Chiefly Scot. pressure, as of work.

verb (used without object)

to assemble, collect, or go in large numbers; crowd.

verb (used with object)

to crowd or press upon; jostle.
to fill or occupy with or as with a crowd: He thronged the picture with stars.
to bring or drive together into or as into a crowd, heap, or collection.
to fill by crowding or pressing into: They thronged the small room.

adjective Scot. and North England.

filled with people or objects; crowded.
(of time) filled with things to do; busy.

Origin of throng

before 1000; (noun) Middle English; Old English gethrang; cognate with Dutch drang, German Drang pressure, Old Norse thrǫng throng; (adj. and v.) Middle English; akin to the noun; compare obsolete thring to press

Related formsin·ter·throng·ing, adjectiveo·ver·throng, verbun·thronged, adjective

Synonyms for throng

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1. horde, host; assemblage.

Synonym study

1. See crowd¹.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for throng

gathering, horde, sellout, crush, swarm, congregation, mass, mob, flock, multitude, bunch, assembly, host, collection, push, concourse, jam, press, drove, assemblage

Examples from the Web for throng

Contemporary Examples of throng

The throng took a collective breath before retreating back behind their office doors.
Inside a Hospital for the Criminally Insane
Caitlin Dickson
September 15, 2014
Cuomo shouted to the throng of elected officials gathered at the head of the parade.
Andrew Cuomo Can't Ignore It Now: He's Weak Even at Home
David Freedlander
September 10, 2014
With that, he took a huff off a morning joint and moved into the throng of jovial patrons.
A Report From the Misunderstood Gathering of the Juggalos
Steve Miller
July 28, 2014
Choi surrounds her lovers with a throng of skillfully rendered supporting characters.
My Sentimental Education: Susan Choi’s Novel of Stormy Love
Wendy Smith
July 11, 2013
On arriving at 10 Downing Street she paused on the front step to address the throng of reporters.
Margaret Thatcher: The Accidental Feminist
Amanda Foreman
April 9, 2013

Historical Examples of throng

So great was the pressure of the throng that men fainted and had to be carried out.
The Grand Old Man
Richard B. Cook
John watched her till she was lost in the throng on the veranda.
The Gentleman From Indiana
Booth Tarkington
However, Baron Suire again forced his way through the throng.
The Three Cities Trilogy, Complete
Emile Zola
They shook hands, and Pierre at once tried to get out of the throng.
The Three Cities Trilogy, Complete
Emile Zola
And this priest lost in the midst of the throng doubtless interested him.
The Three Cities Trilogy, Complete
Emile Zola

British Dictionary definitions for throng

throng

noun

a great number of people or things crowded together

verb

to gather in or fill (a place) in large numbers; crowd
(tr) to hem in (a person); jostle

adjective

Yorkshire dialect (postpositive) busy

Word Origin for throng

Old English gethrang; related to Old Norse throng, Old High German drangōd

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for throng

c.1300, probably shortened from Old English geþrang "crowd, tumult" (related to verb þringan "to push, crowd, press"), from Proto-Germanic *thrangan (cf. Old Norse þröng, Dutch drang, German Drang "crowd, throng").

"go in a crowd," 1530s, from throng (n.). Related: Thronged; thronging.