stampede

noun stam·pede \ (ˌ)stam-ˈpēd \

Updated on: 17 May 2018

Definition of stampede

1 : a wild headlong rush or flight of frightened animals

2 : a mass movement of people at a common impulse

3 : an extended festival combining a rodeo with exhibitions, contests, and social events

See stampede defined for English-language learners

See stampede defined for kids

Examples of stampede in a Sentence

a stampede to the exits
a stampede to buy the stock
a stampede of new applicants

Recent Examples of stampede from the Web

That quake caused a stampede at a school in the northwestern city of Bannu, injuring at least 10 students, according to Mohammad Aslam, a local police official.

— Washington Post, "Magnitude 6.2 earthquake rocks Afghanistan, Pakistan," 9 May 2018
The consumer stampede to streaming media from traditional broadcasters is claiming an unexpected victim: high-yield bond investors.

— matt wirz, WSJ, "Cord-Cutting Pain Spreads to High-Yield Bond Market," 8 May 2018
Last year, two people died in a stampede outside a game between Kaizer Chiefs and fierce rival Orlando Pirates in Johannesburg.

— gerald imray, chicagotribune.com, "Hundreds of South African soccer fans riot at game," 22 Apr. 2018
Police reported that five people were injured by gunfire, with at least one of the wounds self-inflicted, and at least two were hurt in the ensuing stampede.

— lawrence specker, AL.com, "Mobile police offer $5,000 reward in Easter shooting," 19 Apr. 2018
Around 12,000 Qatari camels, peacefully grazing on Saudi land, were expelled, causing a stampede at the border.

— written by declan walsh; photographs by tomas munita, New York Times, "Tiny, Wealthy Qatar Goes Its Own Way, and Pays for It," 22 Jan. 2018
When the first whistle of the train was heard, a stampede of migrants rushed to the tracks, carrying small bags of belongings.

— leyla santiago, CNN, "Caravan of migrants climbs freight train for the next leg of the journey," 14 Apr. 2018
But there was no stampede by others to buy the balky machine.

— james r. hagerty, WSJ, "Burton Smith Lost a Supercomputing Race but Won Respect and Influence," 13 Apr. 2018
To make matters worse, before the stampede started, a New Jersey transit train got stuck in a tunnel under the Hudson River for three hours, causing delays and cancellations.

— emma stefansky, The Hive, "A Taser Caused a Panicked Stampede at New York’s Penn Station," 15 Apr. 2017

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

Origin and Etymology of stampede

American Spanish estampida, from Spanish, crash, from estampar to stamp, of Germanic origin; akin to Old High German stampfōn to stamp

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1828

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

Other Animal Husbandry Terms

apiary, bantam, calico, girth, hogwash, mast, rut

stampede

verb

Definition of stampede

stampeded; stampeding

transitive verb

1 : to cause to run away in headlong panic

2 : to cause (a group or mass of people) to act on sudden or rash impulse

intransitive verb

1 : to flee headlong in panic

2 : to act on mass impulse

—

stampeder

noun

See stampede defined for English-language learners

Examples of stampede in a Sentence

People stampeded to the exits.
The gunshot stampeded the cattle.

Recent Examples of stampede from the Web

People are not going to caravan or otherwise stampede our border.

— daniel gonzález, azcentral, "Sessions sends more prosecutors, judges to border in wake of migrant caravan," 2 May 2018
Don’t worry, that’s not the sound of stampeding elephants — the Cubs just won.

— ben meyerson, RedEye Chicago, "Jumanji, Narnia and John Malkovich: 10 portals from Chicago to fictional places that aren't Hogwarts," 27 Apr. 2018
Chinese tech unicorns are stampeding toward the public markets: If the valuations touted by bankers are to be believed, companies worth an eye-popping half a trillion dollars are now planning initial public offerings this year.

— jacky wong, WSJ, "Beware the Chinese Tech IPO Rush," 25 Apr. 2018
Middle-class families stampeded out of public schools.

— peg tyre, Scientific American, "Trump Administration Advances School Vouchers Despite Scant Evidence," 1 Aug. 2017
Johnson and the Pentagon had manipulated the incident to stampede Congress into passing an open-ended war resolution.

— jeff stein, Newsweek, "Did 'The Post' Get It Wrong? How the Cover-Up of a Green Beret Murder Led to the Pentagon Papers," 31 Jan. 2018
No team stampeded across pop culture while rampaging across the NFL the way the 1985 Chicago Bears did.

— david j. neal, miamiherald, "Super Bowl history game-by-game, from Packers to Patriots | Miami Herald," 30 Jan. 2018
But after the convention stalemated for 35 ballots, delegates stampeded to an alternative all knew as a competent and intelligent candidate, Garfield himself.

— kenneth d. ackerman, Smithsonian, "The Garfield Assassination Altered American History, But Is Woefully Forgotten Today," 2 Mar. 2018
Four schoolchildren were also injured when students stampeded out of their school in the northwestern city of Peshawar, but none was listed in serious condition, according to police and government officials.

— munir ahmed, USA TODAY, "Magnitude-6.1 quake rattles Afghanistan and Pakistan," 31 Jan. 2018

First Known Use of stampede

1838

in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

See Words from the same year

NEW! Time Traveler

STAMPEDE Defined for English Language Learners

stampede

noun

Definition of stampede for English Language Learners

: an occurrence in which a large group of frightened or excited animals or people run together in a wild and uncontrolled way to escape from something, get out of a place, etc.
: a situation in which a lot of people try to do the same thing at the same time

stampede

verb

Definition of stampede for English Language Learners

: to run away in a large group from something especially because of fear
: to cause (animals) to run away in a large group
: to cause (a person or a group of people) to do something suddenly and without proper thought