people

1 of 2

noun

peo·​ple ˈpē-pəl 

plural people

1

plural : human beings making up a group or assembly or linked by a common interest

2

plural : human beings, persons

—often used in compounds instead of persons

salespeople

—often used attributively

people skills

3

plural : the members of a family or kinship

4

plural : the mass of a community as distinguished from a special class

disputes between the people and the nobles

—often used by Communists to distinguish Communists from other people

5

plural peoples : a body of persons that are united by a common culture, tradition, or sense of kinship, that typically have common language, institutions, and beliefs, and that often constitute a politically organized group

6

: lower animals usually of a specified kind or situation

7

: the body of enfranchised citizens of a state

peopleless

ˈpē-pə(l)-ləs 

adjective

people

2 of 2

verb

peopled; peopling ˈpē-p(ə-)liŋ 

transitive verb

1

: to supply or fill with people

2

: to dwell in : inhabit

Synonyms

Noun

• folks
• humanity
• humankind
• public
• species
• world

Verb

• colonize
• populate
• settle

Examples of people in a Sentence

Noun

People can be really cruel sometimes.

People think the coach should be fired.

She tends to annoy people.

People say it's impossible, but I'm still going to try.

a book for young people

a people who migrated across the Bering Strait

the native peoples of Mexico

Verb

a science-fiction novel about a mission to people Mars

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The clip shows the dog waiting outside a door for its owner to appear, followed by the moment that has people talking. —Joseph Epstein, Newsweek, 11 Dec. 2024

Sheriff Robert Luna of Los Angeles County said that about 18,000 people were in the mandatory or voluntary evacuation zones. —Corina Knoll, New York Times, 11 Dec. 2024

Verb

Our ancestors peopled the most lonesome reaches of the globe, from Hawaii to Easter Island, in the span of just a few thousand years. —Cody Cottier, Discover Magazine, 21 Oct. 2024

But unlike Michelangelo, who was known for his muscular figures, Butcher peopled his chapel with his signature sprites. —Penelope Green, Baltimore Sun, 1 July 2024

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English peple, poeple, people, borrowed from Anglo-French pople, poeple, people (continental Old French pople, pueple), going back to Latin populus "a human community, people, nation, the people (transcending the individuals composing it), the general public," going back to Italic *poplo- (whence also Umbrian poplom), of uncertain origin

Note: There is some reason to believe that that the original meaning of populus in Latin was "band of armed citizens, army"—compare the old title magister populī borne by the dictātor, a magistrate given plenary powers in times of emergency, such as an invasion; and the denominal verb populārī "to ravage, plunder." The meaning "army" has also been attributed to uses of Umbrian poplu in the Iguvine Tables. A parallel sense progression ("armed force" > "multitude, throng") is evident in English host entry 4 and its congeners. On the other hand, the sense "mass of a community, the people" is well-attested inscriptionally and in Old Latin authors such as Ennius, so that the meaning "band of soldiers," if it existed, was effectively lost at an early date. The further etymology of populus is unknown, though both Indo-European and Etruscan origins are proffered; a number of hypotheses are summarized by Margaret Watmough in Studies in the Etruscan Loanwords in Latin (Florence, 1997), pp. 69-81.

Verb

Middle English peuplien, peoplen, in part borrowed from Anglo-French popler, poepler (derivative of pople, people people entry 1), in part derivative of peple, people people entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing people

• all things to all people/men
• a man of the people
• beautiful people
• boat people
• flower people
• good people
• if/had (two people's) situations been reversed
• little people
• man of the people
• of all people
• people carrier
• people mover
• people person
• people pleaser
• people pleasing
• people skills
• people who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones
• re-people
• some people/guys have all the luck
• street people
• the people

Kids Definition

people

1 of 2 noun

peo·​ple ˈpē-pəl 

plural people

1

plural : human beings, persons

—often used in compounds instead of persons

salespeople

2

plural : the members of a family : kindred

3

plural : the mass of a community as distinguished from a special class

4

plural peoples : a body of persons united by a common culture, tradition, or sense of kinship, and usually language

5

: the body of voters of a state

people

2 of 2 verb

peopled; peopling ˈpē-p(ə-)liŋ 

1

: to supply or fill with people

2

: inhabit