Definition of thousand
thousands
orthousand
1 : a number equal to 10 times 100 — see number table
2 : a very large number thousands of ants
thousand
adjectiveExplore M-W
Recent Examples of thousand from the Web
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Supervolcanic eruptions are thousands of times greater than normal ones, and very rare, occurring probably only once every few hundred thousand years.
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Vattenfall says the 120-megawatt thermal energy facility in Berlin’s western district of Spandau aims to use wind power to provide heating to thousands of homes in the city of 3.5 million.
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His was a class of thousands, a small village, really, linked by their belonging to each other just for a few hours more.
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Three days after a brief power surge knocked out its communications systems and froze the carrier’s entire London operations, the U.K.’s flag carrier struggled to explain how a local computer outage could strand thousands of passengers.
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A week after the Department of Homeland Security gave thousands of Haitians just six more months to legally work and live in the United States, casting doubt on their fate after January, the department’s chief is headed to Haiti.
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At the same time, Leonard Bernstein conducted a Concert for Peace at Washington’s National Cathedral for tens of thousands, both those who had seats inside and those (including me) standing out in light rain.
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The meat production industry is huge and employs thousands of people.
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The soul of our beloved City is deeply rooted in a history that has evolved over thousands of years; rooted in a diverse people who have been here together every step of the way – for both good and for ill.
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
First Known Use: before 12th century
Other Number-Related Terms
THOUSAND Defined for English Language Learners
thousand
playDefinition of thousand for English Language Learners
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: the number 1,000
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thousands : an amount that is more than 2,000
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: a very large number
THOUSAND Defined for Kids
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!
Learn More about thousand
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Spanish Central: Translation of thousand Nglish: Translation of thousand for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of thousand for Arabic speakers
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