horde

noun \ ˈhȯrd \

Definition of horde

1 a :a political subdivision of central Asian nomads

b :a people or tribe of nomadic life

2 :a large unorganized group of individuals :a teeming crowd or throng

hordes of peasants

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Examples of horde in a Sentence

A horde of tourists entered the museum.
Hordes of reporters were shouting questions.

Recent Examples of horde from the Web

Just when the prospect of an abundant spring harvest in 1848 lifted pioneer spirits, hordes of crickets — ‘

— glenna christensen, idahostatesman, "Mormons and those crickets do indeed have a shared history," 25 Aug. 2017
Some of the world’s most popular destinations are not OK with hordes.

— Bloomberg.com, "Your Evening Briefing," 24 Aug. 2017
Compare the final episode to the epic battle in the last episode of Season 2 of Daredevil, where Matt Murdock (in costume) fought a horde of several thousand ninjas led by Nobu Yoshioka.

— sophie gilbert, The Atlantic, "The Defenders Proves Heroes Aren't Enough," 24 Aug. 2017
The increasing rate of ice melt in the Arctic Circle has again driven a horde of Pacific walruses ashore on an island off the northwest coast of Alaska, reports the Associated Press.

— ben panko, Smithsonian, "Melting Sea Ice Forces Walruses Ashore in Earliest Gathering Yet Observed," 21 Aug. 2017
My queen commands the combined forces of Dorne and the Reach, an Ironborn fleet, legions of Unsullied, a Dothraki horde and three dragons.

— kayleigh roberts, Marie Claire, "Tyrion Purposefully Left Out an Important Detail in His Letter to Jon Snow on Last Week's 'Game of Thrones'," 28 July 2017
QB PRIMER: If Richard Lagow takes next step, so will IU While coaches such as Urban Meyer, Mark Dantonio and Kirk Ferentz had hordes of reporters surrounding their tables, Allen had a relatively small scrum around him.

— brody miller, The Courier-Journal, "Tom Allen not running from Kevin Wilson's shadow," 24 July 2017
As Comic-Con officially opens Thursday, expect hordes of Wonder Women, Captains America, Batmen and Supergirls patrolling downtown.

— peter rowe, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Comic-Con Preview Night's many hints of the four-day madness to come," 19 July 2017
Longer version: Mankind’s survivors have gathered into a fortified city, protected by water on one side and an electrified fence on the other, to keep the ever-growing hordes of the undead at bay.

— rene rodriguez, miamiherald, "An interview with the Zombie King, George A. Romero," 16 July 2017

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

Origin and Etymology of horde

Middle French, German, & Polish; Middle French & German, from Polish horda, from Ukrainian dialect gorda, alteration of Ukrainian orda, from Old Russian, from Turkic orda, ordu khan's residence

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First Known Use: 1555

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