What does "aggregate" mean?
A mass, assemblage, or sum of particulars; something consisting of elements but considered as a whole.
Aggregate
/ˈæɡ.ɹɪ.ɡət/ adj, noun, verb
adj, noun, verb ·Very common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A mass, assemblage, or sum of particulars; something consisting of elements but considered as a whole.
- Grammar: aggregate is listed as adj, noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: sum, total, totality, a to izzard.
- Useful contrasts: elementary unit, facetted, individual behavior.
- Usage evidence: Simply put, a human being is an aggregate of many cells.
How to use "aggregate"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "aggregate" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "aggregate" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "aggregate" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "aggregate" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "aggregate" is acting as adj, noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "sum" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "aggregate", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A mass, assemblage, or sum of particulars; something consisting of elements but considered as a whole. countable, uncountable
"If the nebulosity were due to an aggregate of stars so far off as to be separately indistinguishable, then the central body would have to be a star of almost incomparably greater dimensions than an ordinary star; if, on the other hand, the central body were of dimensions comparable with those of an ordinary star, the nebulosity must be due to something other than a star cluster."
- 2 the whole amount wordnet
- 3 A mass formed by the union of homogeneous particles; – in distinction from a compound, formed by the union of heterogeneous particles. countable, uncountable
"1847, William Black, A Practical Treatise on Brewing : Calculating Lengths and Gravities This in the second boiling will be replaced by nearly an equal quantity of worts, of the same gravity as turned out of the copper, which, in making the calculation, is to be deducted from the aggregate of the second worts, and so on with a third wort if necessary."
- 4 a sum total of many heterogenous things taken together wordnet
- 5 A set (collection of objects). countable, obsolete, uncountable
Show 7 more definitions
- 6 material such as sand or gravel used with cement and water to make concrete, mortar, or plaster wordnet
- 7 The full chromatic scale of twelve equal tempered pitches. countable, uncountable
- 8 The total score in a set of games between teams or competitors, usually the combination of the home and away scores. countable, uncountable
"Brazil won the first series 2-0 on aggregate before Argentina got revenge in 2012 via a penalty shootout."
- 9 Crushed stone, crushed slag or water-worn gravel used for surfacing a built-up roof system. countable, uncountable
- 10 Solid particles of low aspect ratio added to a composite material, as distinguished from the matrix and any fibers or reinforcements; especially the gravel and sand added to concrete. countable, uncountable
""Yes sair," returned the Frenchman, whose prominent eyes were watching the precarious footsteps of the beast he rode, as it picked its dangerous way among the roots of trees, holes, log bridges, and sloughs that formed the aggregate of the highway."
- 11 Any of the five attributes that constitute the sentient being. countable, uncountable
- 12 A mechanical mixture of more than one phase. countable, uncountable
Verb
- 1 To bring together; to collect into a mass or sum. transitive
"the aggregated soil"
- 2 gather in a mass, sum, or whole wordnet
- 3 To add or unite (e.g. a person), to an association. archaic, transitive
- 4 amount in the aggregate to wordnet
- 5 To amount in the aggregate to. transitive
"There are ten loads, aggregating five hundred bushels."
Adjective
- 1 Formed by a collection of particulars into a whole mass or sum; collective; combined; added up.
"All over the country small British columns had been operating during these months--operations which were destined to increase in scope and energy as the cold weather drew in. The weekly tale of prisoners and captures, though small for any one column, gave the aggregate result of a considerable victory."
- 2 Consisting or formed of smaller objects or parts.
- 3 Formed into clusters or groups of lobules.
"aggregate glands"
- 4 Composed of several florets within a common involucre, as in the daisy; or of several carpels formed from one flower, as in the raspberry.
- 5 Having the several component parts adherent to each other only to such a degree as to be separable by mechanical means.
Show 1 more definition
- 6 United into a common organized mass; said of certain compound animals.
Adjective
- 1 formed of separate units gathered into a mass or whole wordnet
- 2 composed of a dense cluster of separate units such as carpels or florets or drupelets wordnet
Synonyms
All synonymsAntonyms
Example
"Simply put, a human being is an aggregate of many cells."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "aggregate"?
Common synonyms include: sum, total, totality, a to izzard, a to z, account.
How do you use "aggregate" in a sentence?
Simply put, a human being is an aggregate of many cells.
How do you pronounce "aggregate"?
Pronounced /ˈæɡ.ɹɪ.ɡət/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English aggregat(e) (“a sum, unit, complex, aggregate”), borrowed from New Latin aggregātum (“an aggregate”), substantivized from the nominative neuter singular of aggregātus, the perfect passive participle of aggregō (“to flock together”), from ad- (“at, to, toward”)) + gregō (“to flock or group”), from grex (“flock”, greg- in compounds) + -ō (verb-forming suffix). See also egregious and gregarious.
Etymology 2
From Middle English aggregat(e) (“aggregated”, used as the past participle of aggregaten), see -ate (adjective-forming suffix) and Etymology 1 for more.
Etymology 3
From Middle English aggregaten (“to aggregate”), from its earlier borrowed past participle aggregat(e) + -en (verb-forming suffix), from Latin aggregātus, see -ate (verb-forming suffix) and Etymology 1 for more.