thousand

noun

thou·​sand ˈthau̇-zᵊn(d) 

plural thousands or thousand

1

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

2

: a very large number

thousands of ants

thousand adjective

thousandfold

ˈthau̇-zᵊn(d)-ˌfōld 

adjective or adverb

thousandth

ˈthau̇-zᵊn(t)th 

adjective or noun

Examples of thousand in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Before the start of the war, the California economy seemed poised for strong growth despite a lagging jobs market that has seen multiple employers — including several major tech companies such as Google, Block and Autodesk — slash payrolls by the thousands. —Los Angeles Times, 13 Mar. 2026

The case, along with two others, has been selected as a bellwether of how thousands of similar lawsuits against social media companies are likely to play out. —Arkansas Online, 13 Mar. 2026

There are currently tens of thousands of people trying to leave the region, and various governments from around the world are working to provide repatriation flights after commercial airline operations were severely disrupted by the conflict. —Jack Guy, CNN Money, 12 Mar. 2026

The tens of thousands of California educators who have taken to the streets or are considering it are united in their struggles — teachers are struggling to keep up with California’s high cost of living and increasing health care costs. —Jennah Pendleton, Sacbee.com, 12 Mar. 2026

Word History

Etymology

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 thumb entry 1

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing thousand

• a picture is worth a thousand words
• bat a thousand
• never/not in a thousand/million/billion years
• thousand-legger

Kids Definition

thousand

noun

thou·​sand ˈthau̇z-ᵊn(d) 

plural thousands or thousand

1

: a number equal to 10 times 100 see number

2

: a very large number

thousands of ants

thousand adjective