What does "many" mean?

1. (a large number of) used before a plural noun to mean a large number of people or things. 2. (comparing numbers) used with words like 'as', 'so', or 'too' to show or compare a specific amount. 3. (large number of people/things) a large number of people or things, used without naming them again. 4. (the majority of people) most people in a society, rather than just a small, special group. 5. (numerous) consisting of a large number.

many — meaning, definition & examples

Word

01a large number of

A1 · Beginner

det. used before a plural noun to mean a large number of people or things.

det. quantifier used with plural nouns that can be counted individually to indicate a large, indefinite number.

“Many students decided to study in the library before the final exam.”

“Many researchers have argued that the initial findings were influenced by a small sample size rather than a genuine trend.”

Usage

Always used with plural nouns; in formal contexts, it is often preferred over 'a lot of'.

Synonyms

numerous multipleplenty of

Antonyms

few

02comparing numbers

A2 · Elementary

det. used with words like 'as', 'so', or 'too' to show or compare a specific amount.

det. used in comparative or intensive constructions to specify or emphasize a quantity.

“There were so many people at the concert that we couldn't see the stage.”

“The company hired twice as many consultants this year as they did during the previous fiscal period.”

Usage

Commonly appears in the structures 'as many as', 'so many', and 'too many'.

03large number of people/things

A2 · Elementary

pron. a large number of people or things, used without naming them again.

pron. functions as a pronoun representing a large, indefinite number of entities previously mentioned or understood.

“Some people liked the new movie, but many thought it was too long.”

“While a few board members supported the merger, many remained skeptical of the long-term financial benefits.”

Usage

Takes a plural verb form.

Synonyms

many people

Antonyms

few

04the majority of people

C1 · Advanced Plural noun Formal · Literary

n. most people in a society, rather than just a small, special group.

n. refers to the masses or the generality of people as a collective group.

“The new law was designed to help the many, not just the rich.”

“The philosopher argued that the needs of the many should outweigh the desires of the elite few.”

Teaching tip

This sense is often used in political or philosophical discussions to contrast the general public with a small elite group.

Synonyms

the massesthe multitude

Antonyms

the few

05numerous

B2 · Upper Intermediate Formal

adj. consisting of a large number.

adj. existing in large numbers; numerous.

“The reasons for his success are many and varied.”

“The challenges facing the new administration are many, ranging from economic instability to environmental concerns.”

Usage

Often used as a predicative adjective after the verb 'to be'.

Synonyms

numerous manifold

Antonyms

few

many vs much

Many precedes plural countable nouns, while much precedes uncountable nouns.

RememberMany for things you can count; Much for things you can't.

From Middle English many, mani, moni, from Old English maniġ, moniġ, maneġ (“many”), from Proto-West Germanic manag, from Proto-Germanic managaz (“many; much”), from Proto-Indo-European menegʰ-, mengʰ- (“many, sufficient”) or Proto-Indo-European *méǵh₂- (“big, great”). Cognates Cognate with Scots mony (“many”), Yola many (“many”), North Frisian manag, manig, mäning (“many”), Alemannic German meng (“many”), Central Franconian mannich, männich (“many”), Dutch menig (“many”), German manch (“many, some”), Low German männich, männig (“many”), Luxembourgish muench, munch, munnech (“many”), Danish mangen (“many”), Faroese mangur (“many”), Icelandic margur (“many”), Norwegian Bokmål and Norwegian Nynorsk mang, mange (“many”), Swedish mången (“many”), Gothic 𐌼𐌰𐌽𐌰𐌲𐍃 (manags, “many; much”), French maint (“many”); also Cornish menowgh (“frequent, often”), Irish minic (“frequently, often”), Manx mennick (“frequent, often”), Scottish Gaelic minig (“frequent”), Welsh mynych (“frequent, often”), Belarusian мно́га (mnóha, “many; much”), Bulgarian and Russian мно́го (mnógo, “many; much”), Czech mnohý (“many, numerous”), Macedonian мно́гу (mnógu, “very; many; much”), Polish mnogi (“numerous; plural”), Serbo-Croatian мно̏гӣ, mnȍgī (“many; much, long; large, numerous”), Ukrainian мно́гий (mnóhyj, “many, multiple”). The noun is from Middle English manye, menye, from Old English manigeo, menigu (“company, multitude, host”), from Proto-West Germanic managu, managī, from Proto-Germanic managō, *managį̄ (“multitude”), from the same root as the determiner. Cognate with Middle Low German menige, menie, menje (“multitude”), Russian много (mnogo), Serbo-Croatian mnogo.

Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

manifold too many