Definition of gregarious
1a : tending to associate with others of one's kind : social gregarious animalsb : marked by or indicating a liking for companionship : sociable is friendly, outgoing, and gregariousc : of or relating to a social group
2a of a plant : growing in a cluster or a colonyb : living in contiguous nests but not forming a true colony —used especially of wasps and bees
gregariously
adverbgregariousness
nounExplore M-W
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Examples of gregarious in a Sentence
[J.P.] Morgan was attracted to bright, self-possessed women who met him on his own ground, felt at home in society, and shared his gregarious instincts and sybaritic tastes. —Jean Strouse, New Yorker, 29 Mar. 1999
… the gregarious trade unionist whose back-slapping mateyness helped make him Australia's most popular politician. —Time, 3 Apr. 1989
As it is a night of many parties, the more social, the more gregarious, the more invited of the guests are wondering whether to go to Harley Street first, or whether to arrive there later, after sampling other offerings. —Margaret Drabble, Harper's, July 1987
She is outgoing and gregarious.
a gregarious child who ran up to every person on the playground and wanted to be their friend
Recent Examples of gregarious from the Web
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Our team, led by Dr. Iya Condé, a gregarious young Guinean doctor, regularly visited the family of a woman who died from Ebola.
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While the marvelous Garcia is the heart of the movie, her unshowy performance strikes an exquisite balance with the more gregarious manner of Claudio Rissi in what's largely a two-hander.
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Richardson, a gregarious woman, had a chance to circumvent the RIAA's legal action.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'gregarious'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Did You Know?
When you're one of the herd, it's tough to avoid being social. The etymology of gregarious reflects the social nature of the flock; in fact, the word grew out of the Latin noun grex, meaning "herd" or "flock." When it first began appearing in English texts in the 17th century, "gregarious" was applied mainly to animals, but by the 18th century it was being used for social human beings as well. By the way, "grex" gave English a whole flock of other words too, including "egregious," "aggregate," "congregate," and "segregate."
Origin and Etymology of gregarious
Latin gregarius of a flock or herd, from greg-, grex flock, herd
Other Botany Terms
GREGARIOUS Defined for English Language Learners
gregarious
playDefinition of gregarious for English Language Learners
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: enjoying the company of other people
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biology : tending to live in groups
GREGARIOUS Defined for Kids
gregarious
playDefinition of gregarious for Students
1 : enjoying the company of other people
2 : tending to live in a flock, herd, or community rather than alone gregarious insects
Word Root of gregarious
The Latin word grex, meaning “flock,”and its form gregis give us the root greg. Words from the Latin grex have something to do with flocks or groups. Anyone gregarious, or social, enjoys being part of the flock. To congregate is to gather as a flock or crowd. To segregate is to separate away from others or away from the flock.
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See words that rhyme with gregarious Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for gregarious Spanish Central: Translation of gregarious Nglish: Translation of gregarious for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of gregarious for Arabic speakers
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