"many" - meanings, definitions, synonyms, thesaurus and antonyms

\Ma"ny\, n. [See {Meine}, {Mansion}.]
A retinue of servants; a household. [Obs.] --Chaucer.

\Ma"ny\, a. or pron.

Note: [It has no variation to express degrees of comparison;
      more and most, which are used for the comparative and
      superlative degrees, are from a different root.] [OE.
      mani, moni, AS. manig, m[ae]nig, monig; akin to D.
      menig, OS. & OHG. manag, G. manch, Dan. mange, Sw.
      m[*a]nge, Goth. manags, OSlav. mnog', Russ. mnogii; cf.
      Icel. margr, Prov. E. mort. [root]103.]
Consisting of a great number; numerous; not few.

      Thou shalt be a father of many nations.  --Gen. xvii.
                                               4.

      Not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not
      many noble, are called.                  --1 Cor. i.
                                               26.

Note: Many is freely prefixed to participles, forming
      compounds which need no special explanation; as,
      many-angled, many-celled, many-eyed, many-footed,
      many-handed, many-leaved, many-lettered, many-named,
      many-peopled, many-petaled, many-seeded, many-syllabled
      (polysyllabic), many-tongued, many-voiced, many-wived,
      and the like.

\Ma"ny\, n. [AS. menigeo, menigo, menio, multitude; akin to
G. menge, OHG. manag[=i], menig[=i], Goth. managei. See
{Many}, a.]
1. The populace; the common people; the majority of people,
   or of a community.

         After him the rascal many ran.        --Spenser.

2. A large or considerable number.

         A many of our bodies shall no doubt Find native
         graves.                               --Shak.

         Seeing a great many in rich gowns.    --Addison.

         It will be concluded by manythat he lived like an
         honest man.                           --Fielding.

Note: In this sense, many is connected immediately with
      another substantive (without of) to show of what the
      many consists; as, a good many [of] people think so.

            He is liable to a great many inconveniences.
                                               --Tillotson.