ag·gre·gate
| \ ˈa-gri-gət
\
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Definition of aggregate
(Entry 1 of 3)
: formed by the collection of units or particles into a body, mass, or amount : collective: such as
a(1)
: clustered in a dense mass or head
an aggregate flower
(2)
: formed from several separate ovaries of a single flower
aggregate fruit
b
: composed of mineral crystals of one or more kinds or of mineral rock fragments
c
: taking all units as a whole
aggregate sales
aggregate
verb
ag·gre·gate
| \ ˈa-gri-ˌgāt
\
\
aggregated; aggregating
Definition of aggregate (Entry 2 of 3)
1
: to collect or gather into a mass or whole
The census data were aggregated by gender.
2
: to amount to (a whole sum or total) : total
audiences aggregating several million people
aggregate
noun
ag·gre·gate
| \ ˈa-gri-gət
\
\
Definition of aggregate (Entry 3 of 3)
1
: a mass or body of units or parts somewhat loosely associated with one another
Froth is an aggregate of tiny bubbles.
2
: the whole sum or amount : sum total
spent an aggregate of 10 million dollars in advertising during the past three years
3a
: a rock composed of mineral crystals of one or more kinds or of mineral rock fragments : an aggregate rock
b
: any of several hard inert materials (such as sand, gravel, or slag) used for mixing with a cementing material to form concrete, mortar, or plaster
c
: a clustered mass of individual soil particles varied in shape, ranging in size from a microscopic granule to a small crumb, and considered the basic structural unit of soil
4
: set sense 21
in the aggregate
: considered as a whole : collectively
Dividends for the year amounted in the aggregate to 25 million dollars.
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Examples of aggregate in a Sentence
Adjective
There were to be thirty-seven playgrounds, twenty schools. There were to be a hundred and thirty-three miles of street, paved with an inch and a half of No. 2 macadam on an aggregate base.
— Joan Didion, New Yorker, 26 July 1993
Their success at opening up new sources of supply, generating and servicing demand, and connecting new markets with the processing industries of the Amsterdam entrepôt seemed … to belie the axiom of an inelastic aggregate volume of world trade—a zero-sum competition.
— Simon Schama, The Embarrassment of Riches, 1988
The mulberry looks a bit like a raspberry. But the raspberry (along with the other brambles, members of the genus Rubus, such as the blackberry) is an aggregate fruit generated by a single, if complex, flower.
— Raymond Sokolov, Natural History, October 1986
With Keynes, standard theory conceded that disequilibria might intrude upon the economy as a whole, but it held that these could be remedied by judicious stabilization of aggregate demand—that is, combined government and consumer purchasing power.
— Robert Kuttner, Atlantic, February 1985
The university receives more than half its aggregate income from government sources.
The team with the highest aggregate score wins.
Verb
The problem, in this case, is that the synergy creates incentives for segregation. Ethnic advertisers scour the TV schedule for shows and channels that "aggregate" viewers of the type the client wants to reach …
— Tamar Jacoby, New Republic, 24 Jan. 2000
"We are good at aggregating eyeballs and delivering services," says Barry Schuler, the president of AOL Interactive Services, "and the Time Warner deal is a natural extension of that."
— Barry Schuler, Fortune, 7 Feb. 2000
Pollsters, for the most part, know perfectly well what they are doing. One thing they are doing is aggregating and averaging ephemeral spasms of "mood" that may have commercial or political value.
— Christopher Hitchens, Harper's, April 1992
… covered only if each of the corporations involved has capital, surplus and undivided profits aggregating more than $10 million …
— Joe Sims et al., National Law Journal, 28 Jan. 1991
The Web site aggregates content from many other sites.
over time, her petty thefts aggregated a significant shortfall in the company's books
Noun
In particular, a core of popular politically minded blogs known in the aggregate as the Blogosphere has been a beehive of furious activity. Or should I say a wasp's nest?
— Steven Levy, Newsweek, 4 Oct. 2004
It's true that our lives are the aggregate of a lot of little things, that's precisely why, at least once a year, we need to ride the wave of something bigger and bolder than our own little humdrum existence.
— Will Manley, Booklist, 1 Sept. 2002
Smallness of enterprises, as in the Japanese bicycle-manufacturing development, is an asset because smallness cuts down administrative and other overhead costs both in individual enterprises and in the aggregate, in comparison with the overhead costs of large operations.
— Jane Jacobs, Cities and the Wealth of Nations, (1984) 1985
numerous episodes of pilferage, taken in the aggregate, can really add up to a significant sum
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Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective
On Tuesday night, the Philadelphia Union secured its progression to the semifinal stage with an aggregate 4-1 win over two legs against Atlanta United.
—
Jim Reineking, USA TODAY, "El Trafico LA showdown, Portland Timbers-Seattle Sounders Cascadia Derby highlight weekend in MLS," 7 May 2021
How aggregate scores on state assessments taken by Black, Hispanic and low-income students compare to what is average for underserved students in the state.
—
Sahi Padmanabhan, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Milwaukee area high schools rank among top high schools in Wisconsin," 6 May 2021
The aggregate payroll must now equate to 250 percent of minimum wage.
—
BostonGlobe.com, "House revamps $1b deal for IGT, Bally’s to handle R.I.’s gambling technology," 4 May 2021
The Timbers reached the CCL quarterfinals by beating C.D. Marathon of Honduras 7-2 in aggregate goals.
—
oregonlive, "Portland Timbers excited for CONCACAF Champions League matchup against Club América: ‘You play to compete in these kinds of matches’," 27 Apr. 2021
The reporting below, however, paints the aggregate image of Scott Rudin Productions as not merely a toxic workplace but one of psychological trauma.
—
Helen Shaw, Vulture, "Scott Rudin, As Told by His Assistants," 23 Apr. 2021
In fact, because aggregate record counts in multiteam standings, even getting to 1-2 against the Hornets could be critical, since there could be a multi-team, tie with Charlotte at the end of the season.
—
Ira Winderman, sun-sentinel.com, "ASK IRA: Is this when the Heat make up for lost time?," 23 Apr. 2021
Localized losses—of jobs, of economic activity—could be acute, even if the aggregate global change is modest.
—
Dickon Pinner, Fortune, "Time is running out for business leaders who don’t have a ‘net zero’ strategy," 22 Apr. 2021
Increases the aggregate cap on Invest CT tax credits by $200 million, from $350 million to $550 million.
—
Christopher Keating, courant.com, "Tax plan proposed by Democrats in the General Assembly increases capital gains taxes for the wealthy, allows restaurants to keep part of sales taxes on food," 22 Apr. 2021
Recent Examples on the Web: Verb
This is an example of what’s called growth instability, in which certain areas tend to aggregate more particles and crystalize faster, making for elaborate fractal patterns.
—
Meghan Herbst, Wired, "Awesome, Hypnotic Photos of Swirling, Crystal Chemistry," 11 May 2021
Platforms that aggregate your volume along with hundreds or thousands of other similar companies get discounted rates on behalf of the total volume.
—
Andrew Wyatt, Forbes, "How To Scale A DTC Brand: Trust, Audience And Supply Chain," 21 Apr. 2021
Annual deficits and aggregate national debt no longer matter much.
—
Victor Davis Hanson, National Review, "The Ten Radical New Rules That Are Changing America," 1 Apr. 2021
The prominence of the debate demonstrated the immense stakes of the fight over election laws, both for how Americans exercise their right to vote and how both parties aggregate political power.
—
Nicholas Fandos, New York Times, "Targeting State Restrictions, House Passes Landmark Voting Rights Expansion," 3 Mar. 2021
Currently companies aggregate overseas earnings, losses and foreign tax credits in various markets into a single global calculation.
—
The Editorial Board, WSJ, "Biden’s Country-by-Country Tax Canard," 15 Apr. 2021
Instead of standing up their own online shop, smaller stores can aggregate their products on one, hyperlocal storefront.
—
Phil Wahba, Fortune, "The pandemic ingenuity of small businesses," 2 Apr. 2021
Scott told The Sun that the program will aggregate data from public databases to trace the origin of guns used in Baltimore crimes, and identify any gun shops that may have sold large numbers of weapons that wind up in the city.
—
Phil Davis, baltimoresun.com, "Baltimore has a gun problem, and a new city program wants to find out how they are getting here," 3 Mar. 2021
In this scenario, people form vessel-clogging antibodies to the complex of heparin and platelets (which help blood to clot when you get cut or injured), which start to aggregate into blood-flow-blocking clumps.
—
Alice Park, Time, "FDA and CDC Recommend Pausing COVID-19 Vaccination With J&J-Janssen Shot While They Investigate Blood Clot Risks," 13 Apr. 2021
Recent Examples on the Web: Noun
But there is a clear difference so far: Broad stock indexes both in the U.S. and the rest of the world in aggregate are still at or near record highs.
—
Mike Bird, WSJ, "A Shift in Market Leadership Is Reassuring When Stocks Get Frothy," 10 May 2021
That practice, however, makes less and less sense as investors increasingly own shares in aggregate, through mutual funds or ETFs, buy fractions of shares, and trade them electronically on no-commission platforms.
—
Oliver Staley, Quartz, "There’s no good reason for Amazon to split its stock," 8 May 2021
That being said, in aggregate, Michigan is still not at the top [among U.S. states] in terms of number of cases in an absolute way.
—
Tanya Lewis, Scientific American, "What’s Causing Michigan’s COVID Surge, and Who’s Getting Sick?," 20 Apr. 2021
And while the industry in aggregate handled its challenges with aplomb, there were plenty of moments where problems were evident to customers.
—
Mark Schlesinger, Forbes, "How To Win The Recovery: Operational Excellence And Platform Resiliency," 19 Apr. 2021
Watched in aggregate, the videos show Toledo apparently tossing a gun away just a split second before the officer fires, though investigators are still trying to determine the precise moment at which Toledo was shot.
—
Megan Crepeau, chicagotribune.com, "Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx acknowledges she did not see video of Adam Toledo shooting or read errant statement before court hearing," 22 Apr. 2021
An auction followed allowing investors to place orders to find the price that reflected the aggregate of buy and sell orders.
—
Simon Clark, WSJ, "Barclays Stock Tumbles in Mini Flash Crash Before Quick Rebound," 14 Apr. 2021
The analysis offered here is merely the aggregate of expert opinions in the industry.
—
Tyler Gallagher, Forbes, "What's In Store For Gold And Other Precious Metals In 2021?," 5 Mar. 2021
There’s something about the aggregate of it that feels special.
—
Julie Beck, The Atlantic, "What It’s Like to Carry On a Tradition With a Friend Who Can’t Remember It," 22 Jan. 2021
See MoreThese example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'aggregate.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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Dictionary Entries near aggregate
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Last Updated
13 May 2021
Look-up Popularity
Cite this Entry
“Aggregate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/aggregate. Accessed 18 May. 2021.
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More Definitions for aggregate
aggregate
adjective
English Language Learners Definition of aggregate
(Entry 1 of 3)
: formed by adding together two or more amounts
aggregate
verb
English Language Learners Definition of aggregate (Entry 2 of 3)
formal
: to join or combine into a single group
: to equal a specified number or amount
aggregate
noun
English Language Learners Definition of aggregate (Entry 3 of 3)
formal
: a total amount
See the full definition for aggregate in the English Language Learners Dictionary
aggregate
verb
ag·gre·gate
| \ ˈa-gri-ˌgāt
\
\
aggregated; aggregating
Kids Definition of aggregate
(Entry 1 of 2)
: to collect or gather into a mass or whole
The particles of sand aggregated into giant dunes.
aggregate
noun
ag·gre·gate
| \ ˈa-gri-gət
\
\
Kids Definition of aggregate (Entry 2 of 2)
1
: a mass or body of units or parts
The rock is an aggregate of several minerals.
2
: the whole sum or amount
They won by an aggregate of 30 points.
aggregate
adjective
ag·gre·gate
| \ ˈag-ri-gət
\
\
Medical Definition of aggregate
(Entry 1 of 3)
: formed by the collection of units or particles into a body, mass, or amount
Other Words from aggregate
aggregation
\
ˌag-ri-ˈgā-shən
\
noun
\
noun
It is now known that these calcifications represent focal aggregations of calcium hydroxyapatite …
— Medical Radiography & Photography, 1982
aggregate
transitive verb
ag·gre·gate
| \ -ˌgāt
\
\
aggregated; aggregating
Medical Definition of aggregate (Entry 2 of 3)
: to collect or gather into a mass or whole
aggregated human albumin
aggregate
noun
ag·gre·gate
| \ -gət
\
\
Medical Definition of aggregate (Entry 3 of 3)
: a mass or body of units or parts somewhat loosely associated with one another
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aggregate
adjective
ag·gre·gate
| \ ˈa-grə-gət
\
\
Legal Definition of aggregate
(Entry 1 of 3)
: taken as a total
aggregate liability
aggregate
verb
ag·gre·gate
| \ ˈa-grə-ˌgāt
\
\
aggregated; aggregating
Legal Definition of aggregate (Entry 2 of 3)
1
: to combine or gather into a whole
class members may aggregate their individual claims
— compare join
2
: to amount to
an award aggregating $100,000
: to form an aggregate
they may not aggregate if their claims are regarded as “separate and distinct”— J. M. Landers et al.
aggregate
noun
ag·gre·gate
| \ ˈa-grə-gət
\
\
Legal Definition of aggregate (Entry 3 of 3)
1
: total amount
may sue in federal court if the aggregate of the claims exceeds $75,000
2
: a whole made up of individual units
the aggregate of operative facts
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Time Traveler for aggregate
The first known use of aggregate was in the 15th century
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