myriad
English Edit
| 100,000[a], [b] | ||||
| ← 9,000 | [a], [b], [c] ← 9,999 | 10,000 | 11,000 → | 100,000 → [a], [b] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1,000 | ||||
| Cardinal: ten thousand, myriad Ordinal: ten-thousandth, myriadth Multiplier: tenthousandfold, myriadfold Collective: myriad Metric collective prefix: myria- Metric fractional prefix: dimi- Number of years: decamillennium | ||||
Etymology Edit
From French myriade, from Late Latin mȳriadem (accusative of mȳrias), from Ancient Greek μυριάς (muriás, “number of 10,000”), from μυρίος (muríos, “numberless, countless, infinite”).
Pronunciation Edit
Noun Edit
myriad (plural myriads)
- (historical) Ten thousand; 10,000 [from 16th c.]
- A countless number or multitude (of specified things) [from 16th c.]
- Earth hosts a myriad of animals.
- 1834, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], chapter XXIX, in Francesca Carrara. […], volume III, London: Richard Bentley, […], (successor to Henry Colburn), →OCLC, page 239:
- A myriad of beginnings to her intended discourse darted into her mind; but, as is usual in such cases, she chose the one the very worst suited to her purpose. "I never intend to marry," said she, in a faltering voice.
- 1914, Henry Graham Dakyns, Xenophon, Cyropaedia, Book I:
- How far he surpassed them all may be felt if we remember that no Scythian, although the Scythians are reckoned by their myriads, has ever succeeded in dominating a foreign nation ...
Usage notes Edit
Used as an adjective (see below), 'myriad' requires neither an article before it nor a preposition after. Because of this, some consider the usage described in sense 2 above, where 'myriad' acts as part of a nominal (or noun) group (that is, "a myriad of animals"), to be tautological.
Derived terms Edit
Related terms Edit
Translations Edit
ten thousand — see also ten thousand
|
vast diversity or number
|
Adjective Edit
myriad (not comparable)
- (modifying a singular noun) Multifaceted, having innumerable elements [from 18th c.]
- 1931, William Faulkner, Sanctuary, Vintage, published 1993, page 131:
- one night he would be singing at the barred window and yelling down out of the soft myriad darkness of a May night; the next night he would be gone [...].
- 2011 April 6–19, Kara Krekeler, "Researchers at Washington U. have 'itch' to cure problem", West End Word, 40 (7), p. 8:
- "As a clinician, it's a difficult symptom to treat," Cornelius said. "The end symptom may be the same, but what's causing it may be myriad."
- (modifying a plural noun) Great in number; innumerable, multitudinous [from 18th c.]
- Earth hosts myriad animals.
- 2013 September 28, Kenan Malik, “London Is Special, but Not That Special”, in New York Times, retrieved 28 September 2013:
- Driven by a perceived political need to adopt a hard-line stance, Mr. Cameron’s coalition government has imposed myriad new restrictions, the aim of which is to reduce net migration to Britain to below 100,000.
Translations Edit
great in number
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See also Edit
Swedish Edit
Noun Edit
myriad c
- a myriad
Declension Edit
| Declension of myriad | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Singular | Plural | |||
| Indefinite | Definite | Indefinite | Definite | |
| Nominative | myriad | myriaden | myriader | myriaderna |
| Genitive | myriads | myriadens | myriaders | myriadernas |