I. (ˈ)stam|pēd, -taam- noun
( -s )
Etymology: American Spanish estampida, from Spanish, loud noise, crash, from estampar to pound, stamp, of Germanic origin; akin to Old High German stampfōn to stamp — more at stamp
1.
a. : a wild headlong rush or flight of a number of animals usually due to fright
a stampede of wild animals is no place for a would-be observer — K.K.Darrow
b. : a sudden retreat or dispersion
this was no disciplined march; it was a stampede — H.G.Wells
2. : a sudden often impulsive action or mass movement of a number of persons having a common motive
the migration took on the proportions of a stampede — American Guide Series: New York
discovery of rich silver deposits sets off a stampede of miners — Howard Boston
a steadily increasing stampede of farm boys escaping … farm work for the dullness of city life — M.B.Smith
delays in delivery would have caused a stampede of postponements — F.A.Swinnerton
specifically : a sudden rush of voters or delegates to support a candidate especially at a national political convention
the favorite son, never sure that a … stampede may not take place at the next moment — H.R.Penniman
worked desperately to stop the stampede , but could not agree on a coalition candidate — I.G.Blake
— compare break 4j
3. : an extended festival or gathering combining a rodeo, exhibitions, contests, and social events
watched the Calgary stampede grow through the years … to a commercialized, supercolossal spectacle — Time
II. verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
transitive verb
1.
a. : to cause (as cattle) to run away in a headlong panic
thunderstorms often stampede the cattle
b. : to cause (a group or army) to retreat or disperse frantically
came the victor stampeding armies before him
2. : to cause (a group or mass of people) to act or move in an impulsive, unreasoning, or hurried manner
the taverners who would stampede us in to eat and drink — G.G.Coulton
Indians were stampeded into violence — Oliver La Farge
have refused to allow ourselves to be stampeded by fear — Hartley Shawcross
attempting to stampede government representatives into giving him control over … workers — Douglass Cater
specifically : to cause (as voters or delegates) to rush suddenly to the support of a party, ticket, or candidate especially at a national political convention
observers consider that the … electorate was stampeded at last year's general election — John Hughes
gained slowly at first, then shot forward with accretions of a 100 votes at a time, and stampeded the convention — H.R.Penniman
intransitive verb
1.
a. : to take to sudden headlong flight in panic
the alarmed herd stampeding across the veldt
b. : to retreat or disperse in a frenzied manner
fired into the roof of the mosque, and the crowd of worshipers stampeded — Time
2. : to move or act usually in a group or mass in an impulsive, hurried, or unreasoning manner
pulled up stakes and stampeded back to China, most of them perishing on the way — A.R.Williams
prospectors … who stampeded into the Klondike — Ivor Jones
companies will now stampede to release … their huge backlogs of modern movies — Wall Street Journal
has … stampeded out of every war into wholesale demobilization — T.R.Ybarra