population

noun pop·u·la·tion \ ˌpä-pyə-ˈlā-shən \

Definition of population

1 a :the whole number of people or inhabitants in a country or region

b :the total of individuals occupying an area or making up a whole

c :the total of particles at a particular energy level —used especially of atoms in a laser

2 :the act or process of populating

3 a :a body of persons or individuals having a quality or characteristic in common

b (1) :the organisms inhabiting a particular locality

(2) :a group of interbreeding organisms that represents the level of organization at which speciation begins

4 :a group of individual persons, objects, or items from which samples are taken for statistical measurement

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populational

play \-shnəl, -shə-nᵊl\ adjective

See population defined for English-language learners

See population defined for kids

Examples of population in a Sentence

The world's population has increased greatly.
The city has experienced an increase in population.
There has been a sharp reduction in the bat population in this region.
the rural population of America

Recent Examples of population from the Web

The agreement allowed Greece to return migrants to Turkey, while the Europeans increased financial support for Turkey's refugee population and provide greater visa liberalization for Turks.

— kevin sieff, Washington Post, "Europe is trying to cut the flow of migrants from Africa. It won’t be easy.," 31 Aug. 2017
But all those fish dinners are taking a heavy toll on ocean populations.

— Bloomberg.com, "We're Running Out of Fish," 30 Aug. 2017
Sandy's impact on major population centers caused widespread interruption to critical water / electrical services and also caused 159 deaths (72 direct, 87 indirect).

— AL.com, "The 7 most devastating US hurricanes since 1980 (photos)," 30 Aug. 2017
Kenney said that immigrants have been key to Philadelphia’s success in recent years — reversing 50 years of population loss and swelling the workforce.

— aubrey whelan, Philly.com, "Philly sues Sessions over sanctuary-city crackdown," 30 Aug. 2017
Some tribes fled into the wilderness to escape alcohol, but that didn’t work for long as the white population moved westward.

— Longreads, "America’s First Addiction Epidemic," 29 Aug. 2017
Louisville was hardest hit, with more than half the population of 308,245 evacuated.

— andrew wolfson, The Courier-Journal, "There's hope for Houston in the story of Louisville's Great Flood of 1937," 28 Aug. 2017
The initial population of 1,700 people increased by 2,400 over the summer of 1848, and by the time railroad trains replaced wagon trains in the 1860’s, over 100,000 Mormons had come to settle the western desert.

— glenna christensen, idahostatesman, "Mormons and those crickets do indeed have a shared history," 25 Aug. 2017
Birth rates have also fallen dramatically, likely because of a decline in copepod populations and because entanglements have stressed females.

— erik stokstad, Science | AAAS, "Endangered right whales are dying in record numbers off Canada, raising alarm," 24 Aug. 2017

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

Origin and Etymology of population

Late Latin population-, populatio, from Latin populus

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1612

See Words from the same year

Other Ecology Terms

Malthusian, anthropogenic, biomass, carbon footprint, crepuscular, niche, sere, symbiosis, taiga, tundra

POPULATION Defined for English Language Learners

population

noun

Definition of population for English Language Learners

: the number of people who live in a place
: a group of people or animals of a particular kind that live in a place

POPULATION Defined for Kids

population

noun pop·u·la·tion \ ˌpä-pyə-ˈlā-shən \

Definition of population for Students

1 :the whole number of people living in a country, city, or area

2 :a group of people or animals living in a certain place

the deer population

Word Root of population

The Latin word populus, meaning “people,” gives us the root popul. Words from the Latin populus have something to do with people. A population is the group of people living in a particular place. Anything popular is common among or enjoyed by many people. A place that is populous has many people living in it.