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gregarious

/grəˈgɛriəs/
/grɪˈgɛriɪs/
IPA guide

If you know someone who's outgoing, sociable, and fond of the company of others, you might want to call her gregarious.

The word was originally used to describe animals that live in flocks — it's from the Latin word grex, meaning "herd." Not surprisingly, people began using it to describe humans who liked being in groups. Today biologists still speak of gregarious species, but you're more likely to hear it in reference to people. Despite what you might suspect, it has no historical connection to the name Gregory — but if you know an outgoing fellow with that name, you could call him Greg-arious.

Definitions of gregarious
  1. adjective
    instinctively or temperamentally seeking and enjoying the company of others
    “he is a gregarious person who avoids solitude”
    synonyms:
    social
    living together or enjoying life in communities or organized groups
  2. adjective
    (of animals) tending to form a group with others of the same species
    gregarious bird species”
    synonyms:
    social
    living together or enjoying life in communities or organized groups
    social
    tending to move or live together in groups or colonies of the same kind
    see moresee less
    antonyms:
    ungregarious
    (of animals) not gregarious
    unsocial
    not seeking or given to association; being or living without companions
    nongregarious, nonsocial, solitary
    of plants and animals; not growing or living in groups or colonies
  3. adjective
    (of plants) growing in groups that are close together
    synonyms:
    clustered
    growing close together but not in dense mats
    see moresee less
    antonyms:
    ungregarious
    (of plants) growing together in groups that are not close together
    caespitose, cespitose, tufted
    (of plants) growing in small dense clumps or tufts
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DISCLAIMER: These example sentences appear in various news sources and books to reflect the usage of the word ‘gregarious'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Vocabulary.com or its editors. Send us feedback
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