people
people definition
peo·ple (pē′pəl)
noun pl. peoples -·ples
- all the persons of a racial, national, religious, or linguistic group; nation, race, etc. the peoples of the world
- a group of persons with common traditional, historical, or cultural ties, as distinct from racial or political unity the Jewish people
- Archaic a group of creatures the ant people
Etymology: ME peple < Anglo-Fr poeple, people < OFr pople < L populus, nation, crowd < ?
plural noun
- person (sense )
- the persons belonging to a certain place, community, or class the people of Iowa, people of wealth
- the members of a group under the leadership, influence, or control of a particular person or body, as members of a group of servants, royal subjects, etc.
- the members of (someone's) class, occupation, set, race, tribe, etc. the miner spoke for his people
- one's relatives or ancestors; family
- persons without wealth, influence, privilege, or distinction; members of the populace
- the citizens or electorate of a state
- persons considered indefinitely people are funny
- human beings, as distinct from other animals
Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2009 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
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