What does gather mean?
Gather means to bring people or things together, to come together, or to collect something gradually. The word is remarkably flexible: it can describe a group assembling, evidence accumulating, a farmer harvesting crops, clouds growing thicker, or a reader inferring a meaning from clues. Its basic image is one of separate people or objects coming together into a larger collection. “Gather” is used in everyday conversation, formal writing, journalism, education, and public life, making it one of English’s most dependable general-purpose verbs. It can be transitive or intransitive: “The organizers gathered the volunteers” describes the act of bringing them together, while “the volunteers gathered in the hall” emphasizes their assembling. The noun “gather,” meaning an assembly or meeting, is also established, although “gathering” is normally preferred. Overall, gather conveys orderly collection and movement toward a shared place, purpose, or result, without necessarily suggesting coercion.
To bring people or things together, to come together, or to accumulate. It also means to harvest, to become denser, or to infer a conclusion from signs or evidence.
"The delegation gathered support for the proposal before the vote."
The verb is transitive when something is brought together or collected, and intransitive when a group assembles. Many figurative senses are conventional and fully idiomatic.
A meeting, assembly, or gathering of people.
"The organizers arranged several small gathers for local volunteers."
Used for the relatively uncommon noun sense meaning a meeting or assembly; “gatherings” is more usual.
"The community hosted a series of informal gathers for local volunteers."
Gather is an English workhorse: the same word can mean bringing people together, accumulating objects, harvesting crops, or inferring a conclusion.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does gather come from?
Gather descends from Old English ġad(e)rian, meaning “to assemble” or “collect together,” and ultimately from Proto-Germanic *gadōną. Closely related forms include Dutch gaderen and Old Norse gadda, both meaning “to assemble” or “collect.” The exact deeper pre-Germanic origin is uncertain, but the English word has long been associated with bringing separate people or things into one group.
Related word forms
How gather is actually used
Gather is formal, neutral, and extremely common. It can function transitively, as in “gather information,” or intransitively, as in “the crowd gathered.” The noun “a gather,” meaning a meeting or assembly, is understood but is less common than “gathering.”