Definitions and meaning of much
much
English
Etymology
From Middle English muche (“much, great”), apocopated variant of muchel (“much, great”), from Old English myċel, miċel (“big, much”), from Proto-West Germanic *mikil, from Proto-Germanic *mikilaz (“great, many, much”), from Proto-Indo-European *meǵh₂- (“big, stour, great”). See also mickle, muckle.
Pronunciation
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /mʌt͡ʃ/
- (Northern England) IPA(key): /mʊt͡ʃ/
- (General American) IPA(key): /mʌt͡ʃ/
- (Canada) IPA(key): /mʌt͡ʃ/
- (dialectal) IPA(key): /mʊt͡ʃ/
-
-
- Rhymes: -ʌtʃ (Southern England, US, Canada)
Determiner
much (comparative more, superlative most)
- A large amount of. [from 13th c.]
- (in combinations such as 'as much', 'this much') Used to indicate, demonstrate or compare the quantity of something.
- (now archaic or nonstandard) A great number of; many (people). [from 13th c.]
- (now Caribbean, African-American, UK regional) many ( + plural countable noun). [from 13th c.]
Usage notes
- Much is now generally used with uncountable nouns. The equivalent used with countable nouns is many. In positive contexts, much is widely avoided: I have a lot of money instead of I have much money. There are some exceptions to this, however: I have much hope for the future. A lot of these cases are emotive transitive verbs and nouns. I have much need for a new assistant. In parallel, I need it very much.
- Unlike many determiners, much is frequently modified by intensifying adverbs, as in “too much”, “very much”, “so much”, “not much”, and so on. (The same is true of many.)
Synonyms
- a great deal of, (informal) a lot of
Antonyms
Related terms
Translations
Adjective
much (not comparable)
- (obsolete) Large, great. [12th–16th c.]
- (obsolete) Long in duration.
Adverb
much (comparative more, superlative most)
- To a great extent.
- (with a comparative adjective) for emphasis or to indicate a great difference
- Often; frequently.
- (in combinations such as 'as much', 'this much') Used to indicate or compare extent.
- (slang) Combining with an adjective or (occasionally) a noun, used in a rhetorical question to mock someone for having the specified quality.
- (obsolete) Almost.
Usage notes
- As a verb modifier in positive contexts, much must in standard English be modified by another adverb: I like fish very much, I like fish so much, etc. but not *I like fish much.
- As a comparative intensifier, many can be used instead of much if it modifies the comparative form of many, i.e. more with a countable noun: many more people but much more snow.
- May be used in humorous questions to draw attention to somebody's undesirable behaviour: "desperate much?", "cherry-picking much?", etc.
Synonyms
- (to a great extent): (informal) a great deal, (informal) a lot, greatly, highly, (informal) loads, plenty (slang, especially US), very much
Antonyms
- (antonym(s) of “to a great extent”): less, little, few, almost, nearly
Translations
Pronoun
much
- A large amount or great extent.
- From those to whom much has been given much is expected.
- We lay awake for much of the night.
Derived terms
References
- “much adv.”, in Green’s Dictionary of Slang, Jonathon Green, 2016–present
Anagrams
Chuj
Noun
much
- bird
Chuukese
Verb
much
- to end
Czech
Pronunciation
Noun
much
- genitive plural of moucha
Old Spanish
Pronunciation
Adverb
much
- apocopic form of mucho; very, greatly
Polish
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈmux/
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- Rhymes: -ux
- Syllabification: much
Noun
much f
- genitive plural of mucha
Swedish
Noun
much c
- archaic spelling of musch
Yola
Adjective
much
- alternative form of mucha
References
- Jacob Poole (d. 1827) (before 1828) William Barnes, editor, A Glossary, With some Pieces of Verse, of the old Dialect of the English Colony in the Baronies of Forth and Bargy, County of Wexford, Ireland, London: J. Russell Smith, published 1867, page 108
Yucatec Maya
Noun
much
- obsolete spelling of muuch
Source: wiktionary.org