Definition of "mass" in English

noun

1. (physical) Matter, material.

2. A large quantity; a sum.

verb

1. (ergative) To form or collect into a mass; to form into a collective body; to assemble.

adjective

1. Involving a mass of things; concerning a large quantity or number.

   • There is evidence of mass extinctions in the distant past.

2. Involving a mass of people; of, for, or by the masses.

   • Mass unemployment resulted from the financial collapse.

noun

1. (Christianity) The Eucharist, now especially in Roman Catholicism.

2. (Christianity) Celebration of the Eucharist.

3. (Christianity, by extension) The main kind of church service, in some denominations.

   • She went to mass every Sunday for many years, and when she retired, she took to going on some weekdays, too.

4. (Christianity, usually as the Mass) The sacrament of the Eucharist.

5. A musical setting of parts of the mass.

verb

1. (intransitive, obsolete) To celebrate mass.