agglomeration

noun

ag·​glom·​er·​a·​tion ə-ˌglä-mə-ˈrā-shən 

1

: the action or process of collecting in a mass

the agglomeration of matter into stars and galaxies

2

: a heap or cluster of usually disparate (see disparate sense 1) elements

… an agglomeration of 100-year-old cottages with gingerbread scroll-saw ornamentation.

—Ira Henry Freeman

3

: a large, densely and contiguously populated area consisting of a city and its suburbs

an urban agglomeration

agglomerative

ə-ˈglä-mə-ˌrā-tiv 

adjective

Synonyms

• agglomerate
• alphabet soup
• assortment
• botch
• clutter
• collage
• crazy quilt
• farrago
• gallimaufry
• grab bag
• gumbo
• hash
• hodgepodge
• hotchpotch
• jambalaya
• jumble
• jungle
• litter
• macédoine
• medley
• mélange
• menagerie
• miscellanea
• miscellany
• mishmash
• mixed bag
• montage
• motley
• muddle
• olio
• olla podrida
• omnium-gatherum
• pastiche
• patchwork
• patchwork quilt
• potpourri
• ragbag
• ragout
• rummage
• salad
• salmagundi
• scramble
• shuffle
• smorgasbord
• stew
• tumble
• variety
• welter

Examples of agglomeration in a Sentence

This suburb has become just a vast agglomeration of houses, people, and cars.

the bedroom community became a vast agglomeration of houses, schools, and small shops

Recent Examples on the Web

Central and Prospect Parks were conceived as vast and soothing preserves deliberately contrasting with the dense agglomeration that their creator, Frederick Law Olmsted, considered noxious. —Justin Davidson, Curbed, 3 July 2024

Just an agglomeration of holds and sells on Wall Street. —Jim Cramer, CNBC, 29 Sep. 2024

The aim is to exploit China’s two greatest strengths in the field: the ability to quickly build physical infrastructure, and thereby support the agglomeration of AI companies and talent, and the lack of constraints on how the government collects and shares personal data. —Zongyuan Zoe Liu, Foreign Affairs, 6 Aug. 2024

For instance, policies that seem to favor urban populations, such as subsidies for electric vehicles, anger rural residents who see such handouts as evidence that the government favors wealthier people in large metropolitan agglomerations. —Marie Hyland, Foreign Affairs, 23 May 2024

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Medieval Latin agglomerātiōn-, agglomerātiō, from Latin agglomerāre "to agglomerate entry 1" + -tiōn-, -tiō, suffix of action nouns

First Known Use

1661, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

agglomeration

noun

ag·​glom·​er·​a·​tion ə-ˌgläm-ə-ˈrā-shən 

1

: the action or process of collecting in a mass

2

: a heap or cluster of dissimilar elements

agglomerative

ə-ˈgläm-ə-ˌrāt-iv 

adjective