populous

adjective

pop·​u·​lous ˈpä-pyə-ləs 

1

a

: densely populated

b

: having a large population

2

a

: numerous

b

: filled to capacity

populously adverb

populousness noun

Did you know?

With a metropolitan area of more than 20 million people, Mexico City could be called the world's second or third most populous city. And the nearby Aztec city of Tenochtitlán was one of the largest cities in the world even when Hernán Cortés arrived there in 1519. But by the time Cortés conquered the city in 1521 it wasn't nearly so populous, since European diseases had greatly reduced the population. Avoid confusing populous and populace, which are pronounced exactly the same.

Examples of populous in a Sentence

the most populous state in the U.S.

Recent Examples on the Web

The prosecutor's race was expected to highlight the countywide races in Michigan's third most populous county, which also is seeing voters supporting former President Donald Trump for another term in the nation's highest office. —Christina Hall, Detroit Free Press, 20 Nov. 2024

Washington sees Indonesia, the most populous country in Southeast Asia, as an important partner in a region where its rival Beijing has deep trade and investment ties. —Reuters, NBC News, 13 Nov. 2024

The state's most populous county registered a turnout of about 53.8%, which is worse than 2020 but slightly better than in 2016. —Tony Cook, The Indianapolis Star, 6 Nov. 2024

And conservative and former state Rep. Matt Krause (R), a proponent of putting the Ten Commandments in public schools, flipped a commissioner’s court seat, giving the right a majority in the nation’s most populous Republican county. —Saul Elbein, The Hill, 6 Nov. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English populous, populus, borrowed from Latin populōsus, from populus people entry 1 + -ōsus -ous

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

populous

adjective

pop·​u·​lous ˈpäp-yə-ləs 

: having a large population