Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • adjective Amounting to a large number; many.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • Consisting of a great number of individuals: as, a numerous army.
  • A great many; not a few; forming a great number: as, numerous objects attract the attention; attacked by numerous enemies.
  • Consisting of poetic numbers; rhythmical; melodious; musical.
  • In descriptive bot., indefinite in number, usually any number above twenty, as stamens in a flower.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • adjective Consisting of a great number of units or individual objects; being many.
  • adjective obsolete Consisting of poetic numbers; rhythmical; measured and counted; melodious; musical.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • adjective Indefinitely large numerically, many

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • adjective amounting to a large indefinite number

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Middle English, from Latin numerōsus, from numerus, number; see number.]

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Examples

  • While covering his presidency, I heard him use the word numerous times, and it was often attributed to him by his friends and aides as well.

    The Great Experiment Strobe Talbott 2008

  • Maccarinelli became WBO champion in 2006, successfully defending his title numerous times.

    WalesOnline - Home 2010

  • Maccarinelli became WBO champion in 2006, successfully defending his title numerous times.

    WalesOnline - Home 2010

  • McCain admits he has used the term numerous times.

    Latest Articles 2008

  • Senior congressional Republicans and Democrats said Wednesday they would join forces with the president to fix what they call numerous flaws in the law.

    Obama seeks to make No Child Left Behind more flexible Nick Anderson 2011

  • Senior congressional Republicans and Democrats said Wednesday they would join forces with the president to fix what they call numerous flaws in the law.

    Obama seeks to make No Child Left Behind more flexible Nick Anderson 2011

  • In a decision dated Friday, another judge, Nathaniel Gorton, ruled against allowing an expert's study, citing what he called numerous flaws in its methodology.

    Quattrone Suit Is Dismissed Randall Smith 2012

  • So NORAD now taking the decision, we are told, to put fighter aircraft over what they called numerous U.S. cities.

    CNN Transcript Oct 11, 2006 2006

  • Northcott said he looks forward to straightening out what he called numerous misunderstandings.

    All Stories 2011

  • The U.N. Committee Against Torture expressed alarm Friday at what it described as "numerous, consistent and substantiated reports" of human rights violations in Syria, including the killing of peaceful demonstrators, the abuse of detainees, arbitrary arrests, extrajudicial executions and disappearances.

    SFGate: Don Asmussen: Bad Reporter Alexandra Zavis 2011

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