INDEX:
1. a large number of people together in a public place
2. when a place is full of people
3. when a crowd fills a place
4. when people come together to make a crowd
5. when a crowd separates
6. to make a crowd separate
RELATED WORDS
when there are a lot of people travelling, shopping etc : ↑ BUSY/NOT BUSY
see also
↑ FULL (5)
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1. a large number of people together in a public place
▷ crowd /kraʊd/ [countable noun]
a large number of people together in one place :
▪ I don’t go to football games because I don’t like big crowds.
crowd of
▪ a crowd of angry protesters
crowds of people/visitors/tourists etc
▪ The exhibition is expected to attract large crowds of visitors.
▷ horde/hordes /hɔːʳd, hɔːʳdz/ [countable noun]
a large crowd of people who are behaving in a way that you disapprove of or that annoys you :
horde/hordes of
▪ She was chased down the steps of the courthouse by a horde of reporters and camera crews.
▪ This time of year is perfect to visit New York because it isn’t overrun with the hordes of tourists.
▷ mob /mɒbǁmɑːb/ [countable noun]
a crowd of noisy and violent people who are difficult to control :
▪ The mob set fire to cars and buildings.
mob of
▪ A mob of fans caused millions of pounds worth of damage in the area surrounding the stadium.
▷ mass /mæs/ [singular noun]
a very large crowd which is not moving and which is very difficult to move through :
mass of
▪ A mass of people stood before the courthouse.
seething mass
when there are far too many people all pushing and trying to go somewhere
▪ The bus station was a seething mass of people.
▷ swarm /swɔːʳm/ [countable noun]
a large crowd of people who are moving quickly in many directions in a very uncontrolled way :
swarm of
▪ Outside the school a swarm of small children ran around shouting and laughing.
▷ throng /θrɒŋǁθrɔːŋ/ [countable noun]
a very large crowd :
▪ The throng greeted Sutter with cheers and applause.
throng of
▪ a throng of reporters
▪ Animals and carts moved along the dusty road with the throng of refugees.
▷ the crush /ðə ˈkrʌʃ/ [singular noun]
a crowd of people who are all pressed close together so that it is very difficult to move between them :
▪ Unable to get out of the crush, Chris began to panic.
▪ A number of people fainted in the crush.
▪ There was chaos as people tried to escape the flames and two children were badly injured in the crush.
2. when a place is full of people
▷ crowded /ˈkraʊdɪd, ˈkraʊdəd/ [adjective]
so full of people that it is difficult to move or find a place to sit or stand :
▪ The train was really crowded.
▪ a crowded elevator
crowded with
▪ It was two weeks before Christmas and the mall was crowded with shoppers.
▷ packed also packed out /pækt, ˌpækt ˈaʊt/ [adjective] informal
so full of people that there is almost no space left :
▪ The club is so popular that it’s usually packed by 9 o'clock.
packed with
▪ St Peter’s Square was packed with tourists.
jam-packed
completely full
▪ The football ground was absolutely jam-packed.
▷ overcrowded /ˌəʊvəʳˈkraʊdɪd◂, ˌəʊvəʳˈkraʊdəd◂/ [adjective]
a place that is overcrowded has too many people in it and is unpleasant and uncomfortable :
▪ The buses are filthy and overcrowded.
▪ overcrowded prisons
▷ be swarming with /biː ˈswɔːʳmɪŋ wɪð/ [verb phrase]
if a place is swarming with people it is so crowded with them that it is difficult to move around - use this especially when a place is full of people you disapprove of or when you are annoyed that a place is so crowded :
▪ The place was swarming with noisy schoolkids.
▷ teeming /ˈtiːmɪŋ/ [adjective]
very full of people and activity :
▪ the teeming streets of Cairo
teeming with
▪ It was the start of the new semester, and the campus was teeming with students.
3. when a crowd fills a place
▷ crowd /kraʊd/ [intransitive/transitive verb]
if people crowd a place, they fill it and move around in it :
▪ Shoppers crowded the town market.
crowd around also round
British
▪ A large group of people crowded around the screaming child.
▪ Fans crowded around the rear entrance of the concert hall, hoping to catch a glimpse of the band.
▷ fill /fɪl/ [transitive verb]
if a lot of people fill a place, there are so many of them that there is no room left for any more :
▪ An audience of over 5,000 had filled the hall that night.
▪ Visitors fill Brighton’s streets during the summer.
▷ mill around/about /ˌmɪl əˈraʊnd, əˈbaʊt/ [intransitive phrasal verb]
if a lot of people mill around, they move around a place in different directions, without any particular aim, especially while waiting for something :
▪ People were milling around in the corridor, waiting for the show to start.
▪ About 40 onlookers milled about while detectives examined the scene.
▷ swarm /swɔːʳm/ [intransitive verb]
if a lot of people, especially people that you do not like or approve of, swarm around a particular place, they fill it and move around it :
swarm across/along etc
▪ Every day tourists swarm through the narrow streets of the old city.
▪ Hundreds of troops swarmed across the border.
4. when people come together to make a crowd
▷ gather /ˈgæðəʳ/ [intransitive verb]
if people gather, they meet or come together and form a crowd :
▪ By the time the president arrived, a large crowd had gathered.
gather around/at/in etc
▪ Angry workers were gathering on the steps of City Hall.
▪ A crowd gathered around to watch the fight.
▷ form /fɔːʳm/ [intransitive verb]
if a crowd forms, more and more people join a group of people who are already watching or listening to something :
▪ A crowd was beginning to form at the scene of the accident.
▷ congregate /ˈkɒŋgrɪgeɪt, ˈkɒŋgrəgeɪtǁˈkɑːŋ-/ [intransitive verb]
if people congregate in a particular place, a large number of them meet there, especially regularly in the same place, and at the same time :
congregate at/in/around etc
▪ On Friday evening, teenagers congregate outside the bars on Greene Street.
▪ Marchers were due to congregate at Market Square for an open-air meeting.
▷ converge /kənˈvɜːʳdʒ/ [intransitive verb] formal
if groups of people converge in a particular place, they come there from many different places and meet together with others to form a large crowd, in order to do something or go somewhere :
converge on
▪ The two groups of demonstrators converged on Hyde Park.
▪ About 20,000 motorcyclists will converge on Milwaukee this weekend, to celebrate the 90th birthday of the Harley Davidson bike company.
▷ collect /kəˈlekt/ [intransitive verb]
if a crowd collects, people gradually come together so that there is a crowd, usually because they stop to watch or listen to something :
▪ An hour or so before the press conference, a crowd began to collect outside the building.
▪ A crowd was starting to collect outside the theatre to await the arrival of the prime minister.
5. when a crowd separates
▷ disperse /dɪˈspɜːʳs/ [intransitive verb]
if a crowd disperses, people begin to move away from it :
▪ Once the ambulance had left, the crowd began to disperse.
▷ break up /ˌbreɪk ˈʌp/ [transitive phrasal verb]
if a crowd breaks up, people start to leave and move away in small groups :
▪ When the police arrived, the crowd broke up very quickly.
▷ thin out /ˌθɪn ˈaʊt/ [intransitive phrasal verb]
if a crowd thins out, people gradually leave so that there are fewer of them in the crowd :
▪ By midnight, the crowds outside the concert hall were beginning to thin out.
▪ I decided to wait until the crowd thinned out a bit before trying to leave.
▷ melt away /ˌmelt əˈweɪ/ [intransitive phrasal verb]
if a crowd melts away, the people leave gradually and quietly, hoping that no one will notice :
▪ The excitement of the arrest was over and the crowd began to melt away.
6. to make a crowd separate
▷ disperse /dɪˈspɜːʳs/ [transitive verb]
if the police or the army disperses a crowd, they make it separate, and people leave in different directions :
▪ National Guard troops were called in to disperse the crowd.
▷ break up /ˌbreɪk ˈʌp/ [transitive verb]
if someone, especially the police, breaks up a crowd, they make it separate, and people go away in small groups :
▪ The police had to use tear gas to break up the protest.