as in throngs
a great number of persons or creatures massed together
a horde of mosquitoes hordes of tourists from the cruise ship crowded the shops and cafes
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Recent Examples of hordes
When the mountain park opens for the season, their businesses attract hordes of mountain bikers.
—
John Meyer, Denver Post, 30 Apr. 2026
Oldham knew the Beatles played primarily to hordes of screaming girls.
—Literary Hub, 21 Apr. 2026
While the course’s low rates have attracted hordes of players, the city has determined that much of the problem stems from the golf course’s 86 annual members, who provide the least amount of revenue yet account for one-quarter of the golf course’s total usage, according to Couceyro.
—Michelle Marchante, Miami Herald, 17 Apr. 2026
In the postseason, the dynamic is more like a pro league, with open locker rooms, one-on-one opportunities and hordes of reporters.
—Dom Amore, Hartford Courant, 5 Apr. 2026
That collective mood change was evident before tipoff against the San Antonio Spurs, when the baseline buzz — and the crowded hordes of cell phone videographers who come with it — was back in full force.
—Sam Amick, New York Times, 2 Apr. 2026
And since the album came out, hordes of fans have turned into armchair investigators, trying to assess which songs may contain AI.
—Kieran Press-Reynolds, Pitchfork, 1 Apr. 2026
Us senior surfers need to stick together to hold off the hordes of nasty agro kidbots that are violently intent on world domination and the spread of nuclear surf rabies and mad Red Bull disease.
—Corky Carroll, Oc Register, 28 Mar. 2026
Aside from royally pissing off hordes of fans (with an average attendance of 25,048 per game, MLB turnstile spins in ’95 were down 20% compared to the league’s pre-strike mark of 31,240), the strike also coincided with a series of media shakeups.
—Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 18 Mar. 2026
John Meyer, Denver Post, 30 Apr. 2026
Oldham knew the Beatles played primarily to hordes of screaming girls.
—Literary Hub, 21 Apr. 2026
While the course’s low rates have attracted hordes of players, the city has determined that much of the problem stems from the golf course’s 86 annual members, who provide the least amount of revenue yet account for one-quarter of the golf course’s total usage, according to Couceyro.
—Michelle Marchante, Miami Herald, 17 Apr. 2026
In the postseason, the dynamic is more like a pro league, with open locker rooms, one-on-one opportunities and hordes of reporters.
—Dom Amore, Hartford Courant, 5 Apr. 2026
That collective mood change was evident before tipoff against the San Antonio Spurs, when the baseline buzz — and the crowded hordes of cell phone videographers who come with it — was back in full force.
—Sam Amick, New York Times, 2 Apr. 2026
And since the album came out, hordes of fans have turned into armchair investigators, trying to assess which songs may contain AI.
—Kieran Press-Reynolds, Pitchfork, 1 Apr. 2026
Us senior surfers need to stick together to hold off the hordes of nasty agro kidbots that are violently intent on world domination and the spread of nuclear surf rabies and mad Red Bull disease.
—Corky Carroll, Oc Register, 28 Mar. 2026
Aside from royally pissing off hordes of fans (with an average attendance of 25,048 per game, MLB turnstile spins in ’95 were down 20% compared to the league’s pre-strike mark of 31,240), the strike also coincided with a series of media shakeups.
—Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 18 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hordes
Noun
-
The plane lands, surrounded by throngs of people, and out steps Hitler, followed by his posse, including Joseph Goebbels.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
27 Apr. 2026
-
There certainly seem to be apparitions in this music, some presence apart from the four musicians and the throngs of fans, which is intensified by the visceral collision of so many sounds.—
Stephen M. Deusner,
Pitchfork,
27 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
There’s no doubt the US military would crush Iran’s swarms of tiny speed boats over time, but time is a luxury Trump doesn’t have.—
Nic Robertson,
CNN Money,
23 Apr. 2026
-
Nothing can ruin a vacation like swarms of mosquitos.—
Evie Carrick,
Travel + Leisure,
22 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Simple precautions such as hand washing and avoiding kissing birds can reduce the risk of infection from backyard flocks.—
Jonel Aleccia,
Los Angeles Times,
30 Apr. 2026
-
Looking for more ways to entice flocks of birds to your yard?—
Brittany VanDerBill,
Better Homes & Gardens,
28 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Ramaswamy has been running what looks like a general election campaign, drawing impressive crowds during visits to each of Ohio’s 88 counties.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
26 Apr. 2026
-
Sets from upstarts like Creepy Nuts, Pawsa, Geese and Slayyyter, along with emphatic crowds at rock heavyweights like Jack White, Turnstile and even Sombr, traded seamlessness and precision for immediacy and friction — louder, looser, more physical in ways that were best felt than watched.—
Andrea Domanick,
Los Angeles Times,
26 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Hordes.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hordes. Accessed 2 May. 2026.
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