English → Latin
“multitude” in Latin
multitūdōA great number; multitude, numerousness.; A great number of people, crowd, mob, throng, multitude.acervusmass, heap, pile, stack, cluster; treasure; consonant cluster (pronounceable group of consonants that occur together)turbaturmoil, disorder, stir, disturbance, tumult, uproar, hubbub, commotion, trouble, confusion, disarray, brawl; mob, crowdnūbēscloud; swarm, multitude; phantom, something insubstantialsilvawood; forest; orchard; grovevolōto wish, to please; to want; to mean, to intendcatervaa crowd, a band, a troop, a retinue; a group, flock, pack (of animals)agmena train of something; multitude, host, crowd, flock; an army, column, troop, band; line or rank of troops; stream, courscōpiasupply, abundance, copiousness, wealth, riches; plenty, fulness, multitude; opportunity, facilities (the means of doing frequēnscrowded, crammed, packed; filled with a multitude, filled, full, crowded, populous; frequent, repeated
The English word multitude itself goes back to Latin multus, through multitūdō.
Riddle & Arnold A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon, 1864
multitude
multitudo (general term): magnus numerus (great number): acervus (a heap of things lying together): turba (a confused multitude or heap; of persons or things): nubes (a great or dense multitude of things or living creatures like a cloud; but ☞ since regard must always be had to the shape of a cloud, it is not Latin to say nubes exemplorum for multa exempla or magna copia exemplorum): silva (a mass of materials from tuck one can make a choice; but only of mental operations; e.g., silva rerum et sententiarum; silva observationum; silva virtutum et vitiorum), vis (a number of persons or things, considered as containing power or energy): caterva, agmen (a band, troop of persons): copia (sufficiency of things needful or useful; hence of persons only when they are considered as means or instruments; e.g., armatorum, virorum fortium copia): frequentia (a number of persons present; also, of things): vulgus (the common people): sexcenti is often employed in Latin to denote an indefinitely large number; e.g., I received a multitude of letters at once, sexcentas litteras uno tempore accepi: an innumerable multitude, multitudo, copia incredibilis; vis magna: one of the multitude (of people), unus e or de multis: to have a multitude of, abundare, redundare, affluere aliqua re; plenum esse alicujus rei.
Quick answer
- What is the Latin word for multitude?
- The usual Latin words for “multitude” are multitūdō, acervus, turba; also nūbēs, silva, volō. The right choice depends on the sense; see the distinctions below.
Entry from J. E. Riddle & T. K. Arnold, A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon (rev. C. Anthon, New York: Harper, 1864), digitised by Fergus J. P. Walsh, CC BY-SA 4.0; Latin markup adapted by latindictionary.co.