thousand

noun thou·sand \ ˈthau̇-zᵊn(d) \

Definition of thousand

plural thousands or thousand

1 :a number equal to 10 times 100 — see Table of Numbers

2 :a very large number

thousands of ants

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thousand

adjective

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thousandfold

play \-zᵊn(d)-ˌfōld\ adjective or adverb

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thousandth

play \-zᵊn(t)th\ adjective or noun

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Recent Examples of thousand from the Web

That includes decades-old flood pumping stations along the Ohio River that protect tens of thousands of city residents and some crumbling sewer lines that date to the Civil War and occasionally collapse, creating dangerous sinkholes.

— james bruggers, The Courier-Journal, "Sewer line sinkhole swallows portion of E. Main Street, potentially closing it for weeks," 30 Aug. 2017
The closures affect hundreds of thousands of students.

— hayley glatter, The Atlantic, "How Schoolchildren Will Cope With Hurricane Harvey," 30 Aug. 2017
Thousands of people who drive into downtown Fort Worth each day know that road construction has made their commute a nightmare for months.

— gordon dickson, star-telegram, "Tired of fighting road construction downtown? Here’s how long it’s going to last," 28 Aug. 2017
Sunday saw thousands wake up to find their homes were rapidly filling with water.

— Southern Living, "How to Help Our Texas Neighbors," 28 Aug. 2017
After seven seasons and eight thousands years, the Wall—arguably the most important character on Game of Thrones—has come a-tumbling down.

— joanna robinson, HWD, "Game of Thrones: Honoring the Death of the Show’s Most Important Character," 27 Aug. 2017
Thousands shared the TV station’s video on Facebook.

— nicole blanchard john sowell, idahostatesman, "Former Idaho reporter goes viral after helping rescue man stranded by hurricane," 27 Aug. 2017
Thousands demonstrated, petitioning the government to even the playing field by reducing taxes and regulatory costs.

— liz alderman, New York Times, "Wine War in Southern France Has Streets Running Red," 25 Aug. 2017
Durbin opened the meeting talking about health care, noting that despite its weaknesses, the Affordable Care Act has provided insurance coverage for hundreds of thousands of people across the country.

— alicia fabbre, Naperville Sun, "Durbin urges residents at Naperville town hall to have faith, seek change," 25 Aug. 2017

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

Origin and Etymology of thousand

Middle English, from Old English thūsend; akin to Old High German dūsunt thousand, Lithuanian tūkstantis, and probably to Sanskrit tavas strong, Latin tumēre to swell — more at ¹thumb

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: before 12th century

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Other Number-Related Terms

jubilee, myriad, quarantine, score, twain

THOUSAND Defined for English Language Learners

thousand

noun

Definition of thousand for English Language Learners

: the number 1,000
thousands : an amount that is more than 2,000
: a very large number

THOUSAND Defined for Kids

thousand

noun thou·sand \ ˈthau̇-zᵊnd \

Definition of thousand for Students

1 :ten times one hundred :1000

2 :a very large number

thousands of things to do

Headscratcher for thousand

is the first number whose name is spelled using an a. That means that you can count from zero to nine-hundred, ninety-nine without ever using an a!

thousand

adjective

Definition of thousand for Students

:being 1000

Learn More about thousand

Spanish Central: Translation of thousand Nglish: Translation of thousand for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of thousand for Arabic speakers

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