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PlainSpell

gathering

/ˈɡæð.ɚ.ɪŋ/noun, adjective, verb

gathering is spelled G-A-T-H-E-R-I-N-G: 9 letters and 3 syllables. It appears 18 times per million words in written English, the 4,667th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, gathering means “A meeting or get-together; a party or social function” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of gathering is gatherings.

How many letters and syllables are in gathering?

Letters9: G-A-T-H-E-R-I-N-G
Syllables3 (from its American pronunciation)
In writing18 times per million words; the 4,667th most frequent word form
Wrong spellings searchednone measured in search

Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).

How common is gathering?

Gathering appears 18 times per million words in written English, the 4,667th most frequent word form in the list.

Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).

How do you pronounce gathering?

  • UK /ˈɡæð.ə.ɹɪŋ/
  • US /ˈɡæð.ɚ.ɪŋ/

Gathering has 3 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-gathering.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).

Forms of gathering

  • gatherings plural

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

What does gathering mean?

The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).

noun

  1. 1

    A meeting or get-together; a party or social function.

    The dinner was a star-spangled gathering unequaled in history.

  2. 2

    A group of people or things.

    a gathering of Catholics

  3. 3

    A section, a group of bifolios, or sheets of paper, stacked together and folded in half.

    This gathering machine forms the backbone of a bookbinding operation.

  4. 4

    A charitable contribution; a collection.

  5. 5

    The collection of produce, items, goods, etc.; the practice of collecting food from nature.

  6. 6

    A tumor or boil suppurated or maturated; an abscess.

adjective

  1. 1

    That gathers together.

    She was worried by the gathering stormclouds.

verb

  1. 1

    present participle and gerund of gather (a form of gather)

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

Gathering in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese

LanguageWords
Frenchrencontre, réunion, rassemblement (get-together, social function), assemblée, groupe (group of people or things)
GermanZusammenkunft, Versammlung (get-together, social function), Ansammlung (group of people or things)
Portugueseencontro (get-together, social function), assembleia (group of people or things), caderno (bookbinding: group of sheets)
Spanishencuentro (get-together, social function), allegamiento, alleganza (group of people or things)

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.

Where does gathering come from?

From Middle English gadering, from Old English gaderung (“gathering, assembly”), equivalent to gather + -ing (verbal noun ending).

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

What to look up after gathering