crowd

1 of 3

verb

ˈkrau̇d How to pronounce crowd (audio)
crowded; crowding; crowds
Synonyms of crowdnext

intransitive verb

1
a
: to press on : hurry
The ships crowded northward.
b
: to press close
The players crowded around the coach.
2
: to collect in numbers
Police officers warned people not to crowd.

transitive verb

1
a
: to fill by pressing or thronging together
crowd a room
b
: to press, force, or thrust into a small space
crowded the people into the bus
2
: push, force
—often used with off or out
crowd a person off the sidewalk
3
a
: to urge on
… I crowded him until streams of sweat ran from his beard.— Jesse H. Stuart
b
: to put on (sail) in excess of the usual for greater speed
4
: to put pressure on
Don't crowd me, I'll pay.
5
: throng, jostle
… changes … crowd each other in a whirl of confusing images when we try to picture this century …— Nicholas Murray Butler
6
: to press or stand close to
The batter was crowding the plate.
7
: to approach or come close to (an age or amount)
a friend who's crowding 70
… a sedan that crowds $100,000 when all the option boxes have been checked.— Jeff Sabatini

crowd

2 of 3

noun (1)

1
: a large number of persons especially when collected together : throng
2
a
: the great body of the people : populace
b
: most of one's peers
follow the crowd
3
: a large number of things close together
… I saw a crowd … of golden daffodils …— William Wordsworth
4
: a group of people having something (such as a habit, interest, or occupation) in common
in with the wrong crowd
the Hollywood crowd

crowd

3 of 3

noun (2)

ˈkrau̇d How to pronounce crowd (audio) ˈkrüd How to pronounce crowd (audio)
1
: an ancient Celtic stringed instrument that is plucked or bowed

called also crwth

2
dialectal, England : violin

Illustration of crowd

Illustration of crowd
  • 3crowd 1

Synonyms

Verb

Noun (1)

See all Synonyms & Antonyms in Thesaurus 
Choose the Right Synonym for crowd

crowd, throng, horde, crush, mob mean an assembled multitude.

crowd implies a close gathering and pressing together.

a crowd gathered

throng and horde suggest movement and pushing.

a throng of reporters
a horde of shoppers

crush emphasizes the compactness of the group, the difficulty of individual movement, and the attendant discomfort.

a crush of fans

mob implies a disorderly crowd with the potential for violence.

an angry mob

Examples of crowd in a Sentence

Verb Boxes crowded the floor of my apartment. There are too many products crowding the market. The club has been accused of crowding too many people into too small a space.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Verb
Melting icebergs crowd the Ilulissat Icefjord near Ilulissat, Greenland, on July 16. — Evan Bush, NBC News, 12 Nov. 2024 My high point was executing an 180 degree mid air somersault crowd surfing on the first night of the Osees residency at Hotel Vegas while John Dwyer inhaled the house mic. — Mars Salazar, Austin American-Statesman, 11 Nov. 2024
Noun
While there is interest in them, especially from a younger crowd, their cost and durability are significant concerns. — Tim Bajarin, Forbes, 21 Nov. 2024 Later, the availability of an old school operating theater allows for a satisfyingly old school courtroom drama climax, with Semmelweis facing a medical board for his actions in front of a full crowd. — Stephen Saito, Variety, 19 Nov. 2024 See all Example Sentences for crowd 

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English crouden "to push forward, jostle, press, push or drive (something wheeled)," going back to Old English crūdan "to crowd, press (against), press forward (of a ship)," going back to Germanic *krūdan- "to press, push forward" (whence also Middle Dutch crûden "to push, shove, trundle," Norwegian regional kryda (preterit kraud) "to flow together, congregate"), of uncertain origin

Note: Old English crūdan, a Class II strong verb, is attested twice in poetic texts, as crydeþ (third person singular present) and cread (third singular preterit); evidence in other old Germanic languages is lacking. Nominal derivatives *kruda- and *krudan- are evident in Old English lindgecrod "shield-bearing crowd" and lindcroda "shield-press, battle"; the same underlying forms may be evident in Middle Dutch crod "hindrance, bother," Middle High German krot "annoyance, distress," kroten, kröten "to bother, annoy." (Further Frisian and Low German forms are detailed in the Oxford English Dictionary, first edition, s.v. crowd.) See also crud entry 2.

Noun (1)

derivative of crowd entry 1

Noun (2)

Middle English crouþ, croude, borrowed from Middle Welsh crwth "crowd (the instrument), fiddle, hump, humpback, anything round or bulging," going back to Celtic *krutto- "round or bulging object" (whence also, from a feminine derivative *kruttā, Welsh croth "womb, belly"; also Middle Irish crott, cruitt "harp, lyre, hump," Middle Breton courz "female genitals"), probably of expressive origin

Note: The word crotta as the name of a musical instrument was used by the sixth century Latin poet and hymnodist Venantius Fortunatus ("… crotta Britanna canat" - "… may the British crotta sing"). The grounds for the shift from th to d in the English word are uncertain.

First Known Use

Verb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1a

Noun (1)

1565, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (2)

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of crowd was before the 12th century

Phrases Containing crowd

Dictionary Entries Near crowd

crow corn

crowd

crowd around/round

See More Nearby Entries 

Cite this Entry

“Crowd.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/crowd. Accessed 30 Nov. 2024.

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Kids Definition

crowd

1 of 2 verb
ˈkrau̇d How to pronounce crowd (audio)
1
: to press forward or close
crowd into an elevator
2
: to push or press into a small space
crowd coats into a closet
3
: to fill or pack by pressing together
cars crowded the roads
4
: to push or force by or as if by a crowd
crowded me off the sidewalk

crowd

2 of 2 noun
1
: a large number of persons or things crowded or crowding together
2
: the population as a whole : ordinary people
books that appeal to the crowd
3
: a large number of things close together
4
: a group of people having a common interest

More from Merriam-Webster on crowd

Nglish: Translation of crowd for Spanish Speakers

Britannica English: Translation of crowd for Arabic Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about crowd

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