人々の定義と意味 - メリアム・ウェブスター

PEOPLE Definition & Meaning - Merriam-Webster Est. 1828 Dictionary Definition noun verb noun 2 noun verb Synonyms Example Sentences Word History Phrases Containing Rhymes Entries Near Related Articles Cite this Entry Citation Kids Definition Kids More from M-W Show more Show more Citation Kids More from M-W Save Word To save this word, you'll need to log in. Log In people 1 of 2 noun peo·​ple ˈpē-pəl plural people Synonyms of people 1 plural : human beings , persons : such as a plural : human beings as a group believes that people are basically good things people say b : people who form a segment of humanity usually sharing a common characteristic young people met all sorts of people on the trip ( proverb ) People who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones. — often used in combination sales people c : people linked by a common factor the people next door the people of the village city/mountain people the American people 2 plural : the members of a family or kinship Where are your people from? Our people have been farmers for generations. 3 plural : the mass of a community or group as distinguished from a special class disputes between the people and the nobles a queen's duty to her people a priest addressing the people 4 plural peoples : human beings forming a body and united by a common culture, tradition, or sense of kinship, and typically having common language, institutions, and beliefs, and often constituting a politically organized group nations populated by distinct peoples 5 a : animals usually of a specified kind or situation furry and feathered peoples of the forest b : mythical beings thought of as similar to humans the fairy peoples see also little people sense 1 6 : the body of enfranchised citizens of a state representatives elected by the people peopleless ˈpē-pə(l)-ləs adjective Usage of Person The words person and people are not related etymologically. Person comes from Latin persona , meaning "actor's mask; character in a play; person," while people comes from Latin populus , meaning "the people." Person is the older word; beginning in the early 13th century, it referred both to a human being (as it most often does now), and to a character in a play (a meaning seldom heard in modern use). People was adopted in the early 14th century for general reference to human beings, and shortly after for reference to more than one person. Persons competed with people in this role for centuries, and for much of the 20th century persons was recommended whenever a group or a number of individuals were being mentioned, as in "the persons at the table" and "seven persons." These uses are now largely relegated to law-related contexts; in other contexts they are considered old-fashioned. People is today the usual plural of person . 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 of people Relevance Noun world folks humanity public Verb inhabit populate See All Synonyms & Antonyms in Thesaurus 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 See More Recent Examples on the Web Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback . Noun That would bring the global total of people facing food insecurity to 363 million, the highest level on record. — Mae Anderson, Chicago Tribune , 1 May 2026 The team asked people to memorize locations on a graph while smelling the scent of rose. — Shayla Love, New Yorker , 1 May 2026 Verb Hypocrisy, not rail spindles or dog poop, is top of the play’s agenda, and to poke around that subject the playwright has peopled his work with a collection of character types. — Greg Evans, Deadline , 21 Apr. 2026 The characters who people the novel rise to speak for themselves. — Literary Hub , 16 Apr. 2026 See All Example Sentences for people 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 Time Traveler The first known use of people was in the 13th century See more words from the same century 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 See More Rhymes for people businesspeople craftspeople laypeople salespeople townspeople tradespeople workpeople steeple See All Rhymes for people Browse Nearby Words peony red people people's bank See all Nearby Words Articles Related to people 'People' vs. 'Persons' How to choose between two words that seem to mean the same thing Cite this Entry Style MLA Chicago APA Merriam-Webster “People.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary , Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/people. Accessed 4 May. 2026. Copy Citation 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 sales people 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 More from Merriam-Webster on people Nglish: Translation of people for Spanish Speakers Last Updated: 1 May 2026 - Updated example sentences Love words? Need even more definitions? Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free! Merriam-Webster unabridged More from Merriam-Webster Word of the Day scrupulous See Definitions and Examples » Get Word of the Day daily email! 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