thousand
noun
thou·sand ˈthau̇-zᵊn(d) 
plural thousands or thousand
1
: a number equal to 10 times 100 see Table of Numbers
2
: a very large number
thousands of ants
thousand adjective
thousandfold
ˈthau̇-zᵊn(d)-ˌfōld
adjective or adverb thousandth
ˈthau̇-zᵊn(t)th
adjective or noun 
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the Web The massacre in Tiananmen Square was a violent repression of pro-democracy students by Chinese Communist security forces, as the regime killed hundreds or even thousands of dissidents rather than reform. 
Joel Gehrke, Washington Examiner, 5 June 2020 Hundreds, if not thousands, of interview requests have flooded in. Linda Tirado, The New Republic, 4 June 2020 In mainland China, officials ban most discussions of the crackdown in which the government turned its troops and tanks on crowds of protesters, killing hundreds, if not thousands, of people. Austin Ramzy, BostonGlobe.com, 4 June 2020 Hundreds of thousands of them had been marching for over a year, even after toppling the previous president, Abdelaziz Bouteflika, in April 2019. The Economist, 4 June 2020 June 4 marks 31 years since the Chinese government declared martial law and violently suppressed demonstrations in and around Tiananmen Square in Beijing, resulting in hundreds—if not thousands—of deaths. Naomi Xu Elegant, Fortune, 3 June 2020 These guidelines are being adopted as the baseline health and cleaning requirements at thousands of hotels, with many determined to go beyond the recommendations. Jill K. Robinson, Travel + Leisure, 28 May 2020 At Lake of the Ozarks, hundreds — if not thousands — gathered for a packed pool party over the holiday. Elly Belle, refinery29.com, 26 May 2020 But experts had to look at hundreds or even thousands of records to prove that smoking was the cause. Jared D. Taylor, The Conversation, 21 May 2020 See More
Joel Gehrke, Washington Examiner, 5 June 2020 Hundreds, if not thousands, of interview requests have flooded in. Linda Tirado, The New Republic, 4 June 2020 In mainland China, officials ban most discussions of the crackdown in which the government turned its troops and tanks on crowds of protesters, killing hundreds, if not thousands, of people. Austin Ramzy, BostonGlobe.com, 4 June 2020 Hundreds of thousands of them had been marching for over a year, even after toppling the previous president, Abdelaziz Bouteflika, in April 2019. The Economist, 4 June 2020 June 4 marks 31 years since the Chinese government declared martial law and violently suppressed demonstrations in and around Tiananmen Square in Beijing, resulting in hundreds—if not thousands—of deaths. Naomi Xu Elegant, Fortune, 3 June 2020 These guidelines are being adopted as the baseline health and cleaning requirements at thousands of hotels, with many determined to go beyond the recommendations. Jill K. Robinson, Travel + Leisure, 28 May 2020 At Lake of the Ozarks, hundreds — if not thousands — gathered for a packed pool party over the holiday. Elly Belle, refinery29.com, 26 May 2020 But experts had to look at hundreds or even thousands of records to prove that smoking was the cause. Jared D. Taylor, The Conversation, 21 May 2020 See More Word History
Etymology
Middle English, from Old English thūsend; akin to Old High German dūsunt thousand, Lithuanian tūkstantis, and probably to Sanskrit tavas strong, Latin tumēre to swell — more at thumb entry 1
First Known Use
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Phrases Containing thousand
Kids Definition
thousand 1 of 2
noun
thou·sand ˈthau̇-zᵊnd
1
: ten times one hundred : 1000
2
: a very large number
thousands of things to do
thousand
2 of 2adjective
: being 1000