people

Etymology

From Middle English puple, peple, peeple, from Anglo-Norman people, from Old French pueple, peuple, pople, from Latin populus (“a people, nation”), from Old Latin populus, from earlier poplus, from even earlier poplos, from Proto-Italic *poplos (“army”) of unknown origin. Gradually ousted native English lede and, partially, folk. Originally a singular noun (e.g. The people is hungry, and weary, and thirsty, in the wilderness –2 Samuel 17:29, King James Version, spelling modernized), the plural aspect of people is probably due to influence from Middle English lede, leed, a plural since Old English times; see lēode.

noun

1. Used as plural of person">person; a body of human beings considered generally or collectively; a group of two or more persons.
   There were so many people at the restaurant last night.
   XXII people was in this parrish drownd. c. 1607, plaque recording the Bristol Channel floods
   What a charming amusement for young people this is, Mr. Darcy! There is nothing like dancing after all. I consider it as one of the first refinements of polished society. 1813, Jane Austen, chapter 6, in Pride and Prejudice, →OCLC
   There were many wooden chairs for the bulk of his visitors, and two wicker armchairs with red cloth cushions for superior people. From the packing-cases had emerged some Indian clubs,[…], and all these articles[…]made a scattered and untidy decoration that Mrs. Clough assiduously dusted and greatly cherished. 1918, W. B. Maxwell, chapter 12, in The Mirror and the Lamp, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2017-11-22
   “[…] the awfully hearty sort of Christmas cards that people do send to other people that they don't know at all well. You know. The kind that have mottoes like Here's rattling good luck and roaring good cheer, / With lashings of food and great hogsheads of beer.[…]” 1922, Ben Travers, chapter 1, in A Cuckoo in the Nest, archived from the original on 2016-05-09
   But poverty’s scourge is fiercest below $1.25 (the average of the 15 poorest countries’ own poverty lines, measured in 2005 dollars and adjusted for differences in purchasing power): people below that level live lives that are poor, nasty, brutish and short. 2013-06-01, “Towards the end of poverty”, in The Economist, volume 407, number 8838, archived from the original on 2018-10-23, page 11
   Mostly, the microbiome is beneficial. It helps with digestion and enables people to extract a lot more calories from their food than would otherwise be possible. Research over the past few years, however, has implicated it in diseases from atherosclerosis to asthma to autism. 2013-06-29, “A punch in the gut”, in The Economist, volume 407, number 8842, archived from the original on 2018-11-03, pages 72–3
2. (countable) Persons forming or belonging to a particular group, such as a nation, class, ethnic group, country, family, etc.
   The people have spoken, the bastards. 1966, Dick Tuck, Concession Speech
3. A group of persons regarded as being employees, followers, companions or subjects of a ruler.
   The ox knows its owner, and the ass its master's crib; but Israel does not know, my people does not understand. 1952, Old Testament, Revised Standard Version, Thomas Nelson & Sons, Isaiah 1:3
4. One's colleagues or employees.
   Kennedy looked down at Flood's desk and thought about the possibilities. "Can you locate him?""I already have my people checking on all three. So far I've only been able to confirm the whereabouts of the Jordanian officer." 2001, Vince Flynn, Transfer of Power (fiction), Simon & Schuster, page 250
   Can I have one of my people get back to your people, Mr. President?" She tried to slam the phone back into the base and failed. 2008, Fern Michaels, Hokus Pokus (fiction), page 184
5. A person's ancestors, relatives or family.
   My people lived through the Black Plague and the Thirty Years War.
6. The mass of a community as distinguished from a special class (elite); the commonalty; the populace; the vulgar; the common crowd; the citizens.
   The dirty secret of the internet is that all this distraction and interruption is immensely profitable. Web companies like to boast about[…], or offering services that let you[…]"share the things you love with the world" and so on. But the real way to build a successful online business is to be better than your rivals at undermining people's control of their own attention. June 21 2013, Oliver Burkeman, “Conscious computing: how to take control of your life online”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 189, number 2, archived from the original on 2013-08-24, page 27

noun

1. plural of person.

verb

1. (transitive) To stock with people or inhabitants; to fill as with people; to populate.
   He would not be alone, who all things can; / But peopled Heav'n with Angels, Earth with Man. 1674, John Dryden, The State of Innocence and the Fall of Man, act II, scene I
2. (intransitive) To become populous or populated.
3. (transitive) To inhabit; to occupy; to populate.
   […] / As thick and numberless / As the gay motes that people the Sun Beams, / […] a. 1645, John Milton, Il Penseroso, lines 7–8
4. (rare, informal) To interact with people; to socialize.
   I don't people well.” “Not peopling well is a crap excuse,” I retorted, and started to step around him, but a sudden thought occurred to me. 2018, Jennifer L. Armentrout, The Darkest Star, Tor Teen, page 149
   My head tilted as Calvin said, "Don't worry about him. He just doesn't people well. The fuck? I people. Sometimes. With people I know. 2019, Casey Diam, Love
   I don't people well.” He laughed at that. “You do okay,” he assured her. 2020, Teri Anne Stanley, Lucky Chance Cowboy, Sourcebooks, Inc.