multitude

Etymology

From Middle English multitude, multitud, multytude (“(great) amount or number of people or things; multitudinous”), borrowed from Old French multitude (“crowd of people; diversity, wide range”), or directly from its etymon Latin multitūdō (“great amount or number of people or things”), from multus (“many; much”) + -tūdō (suffix forming abstract nouns indicating a state or condition). The English word is analysable as multi- + -itude.

noun

  1. A great amount or number, often of people; abundance, myriad, profusion.
  2. The mass of ordinary people; the masses, the populace.
    Thou shalt not follow a multitude to do evil 1599, “Exodus 23:2”, in Geneva Bible, Tolle Lege Press, page 83

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