crowdsourcing

noun

crowd·​sourc·​ing ˈkrau̇d-ˌsȯr-siŋ 

: the practice of obtaining needed services, ideas, or content by soliciting contributions from a large group of people and especially from the online community rather than from traditional employees or suppliers

Online crowdsourcing strategies that induce masses of people to solve a task, such as locating far-flung items or alleviating world hunger, work best when financial incentives impel participants to enlist friends and acquaintances in the effort, a new study concludes.

—Bruce Bower

These sites take advantage of the phenomenon known as crowdsourcing, or turning to the online masses for free or low-cost submissions.

—Katie Hafner

crowdsource transitive verb

crowdsourced; crowdsourcing

But many people don't know the story behind Legos—how the company, on the verge of collapse, crowdsourced its future by polling its most hardcore fans, or how the little blocks have exploded to become a major force in education …

—Smithsonian

Examples of crowdsourcing in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Retton hit back at those who questioned the need for the crowdsourcing campaign. —Martha Ross, Mercury News, 27 May 2025

The earthquake struck at 9:33 a.m., and weak shaking was felt as far away as Los Angeles’ Westside, according to reports submitted to the U.S. Geological Survey’s crowdsourcing website. —Rong-Gong Lin Ii, Los Angeles Times, 7 May 2025

The crowdsourcing venture aims to find victims of the Eaton and Palisades blazes who had lost Disney mementos. —Andrew J. Campa, Los Angeles Times, 18 Apr. 2025

But as these crowdsourcing platforms prove, the most significant AI models may be the ones that most effectively leverage human creativity. —John Winsor, Forbes, 25 Mar. 2025

Word History

Etymology

crowd entry 2 + outsourcing, gerund of outsource

First Known Use

2006, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for crowdsourcing

• divorcing
• endorsing
• enforcing
• indorsing
• outsourcing
• coursing
• forcing
• sourcing
• reinforcing

Kids Definition

crowdsourcing

noun

crowd·​sourc·​ing

ˈkrau̇d-ˌsȯr-siŋ

: the practice of obtaining needed services, ideas, or content by seeking contributions from a large group of people and especially from the online community