bevy

noun \ ˈbe-vē \

Updated on: 23 May 2018

Definition of bevy

plural bevies

1 : a large group or collection

a bevy of girls

2 : a group of animals and especially quail

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See bevy defined for kids

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Recent Examples of bevy from the Web

Someone really upped the ante with a bevy of beverage comparisons.

— ashley hoffman, Time, "People Think Pippa Middleton's Dress Looks Eerily Like an Arizona Iced Tea Can," 19 May 2018
Joining the festivities were a slew of fashion-minded friends including Aurora James, Gigi Burris, and Joseph Altuzarra along with a bevy of beauties such as Hanne Gaby Odiele, Ophelie Guillermand, and Julia Stegner.

— edward barsamian, Vogue, "Ryan Korban Is Celebrated in Sleek Style by Brandon Maxwell and Jourdan Dunn," 11 May 2018
From newborn to toddler stage, this complete travel system accommodates kiddos up to 50 lbs. and comes with a bevy of snazzy features like four travel modes, a large storage basket, rear-wheel brake system, removable arm bar and more.

— jen juneau, PEOPLE.com, "Diaper Bags! Strollers! A Breast Pump! 5 Perfect Mother's Day Gifts for Moms on the Go," 9 May 2018
After releasing his fifth studio album KOD earlier this month, J. Cole has been solidifying his summer plans with a bevy of festival outings, with his latest one now being Bumbershoot.

— carl lamarre, Billboard, "J. Cole, SZA & Lil Wayne to Headline Bumbershoot Festival," 30 Apr. 2018
On Larry Drew and the job he's done Lue, 40, in his third season as Cavs coach, was dealing with a bevy of difficult symptoms, including chest pains and sleep deprivation.

— joe vardon, cleveland.com, "Tyronn Lue to return as Cavaliers coach Thursday against the Wizards," 4 Apr. 2018
The Razorbacks ride-or-die with their backcourt, and with a bevy of 3-pointers, and Butler simply took that away.

— gregg doyel, Indianapolis Star, "Doyel: Purdue loaded without Isaac Haas, but Butler has an unload button," 17 Mar. 2018
By now, watching returns on election night has gotten more sophisticated with a bevy of tools that provide more detailed analysis of where the election is likely to end up.

— philip bump, Washington Post, "Don’t be seduced by the artificial drama of election-night returns," 13 Mar. 2018
Revitalizing your beauty regimen, which is getting easier by the day thanks to a bevy of brands putting sustainably sourced ingredients and environmentally conscious packaging first.

— ivana rihter, Vogue, "5 New, Eco-Friendly Beauty Brands, Just in Time for Earth Day," 21 Apr. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'bevy.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

What Makes Up a bevy?

What do you call a group of crows? Or swine? Or leopards? Well-educated members of the medieval gentry seem to have been expected to know the answers: a murder of crows, a sounder of swine, and a leap of leopards. They would also have been expected to know that bevy referred specifically to a group of deer, quail, larks, or young ladies. Scholars aren't certain why bevy was chosen for those groups (though they have theories). What is known for sure is that bevy first appeared in the 15th century and was used as a highly specific collective for many years. Today, however, bevies can include anything from football players to toaster ovens.