population

The word “population” means the total number of people living in a particular place. In plain terms, the number or group of people (or organisms) living somewhere, or a defined group used for study or statistics.

“Population” is pronounced pop-yuu-LAY-shuhn (/ˌpɑ.pjəˈleɪ.ʃən/ in IPA).

Here is “population” used in a sentence: “The population of the town has doubled in ten years.”

“Population” is a noun.

The word “population” comes from Late Latin. From Late Latin populatio ("a people, multitude"), formed from Latin populus.

“Population” is a very common word in modern English, usually learned at around the A2 level.

“Population” has 2 distinct senses listed in this dictionary. The most common is: the total number of people living in a particular place.

In statistics, a population is the entire group you want to study, such as every resident of a city. A sample is a smaller subset chosen from that population to represent it. Researchers study a sample because measuring a whole population is often impractical, then use the results to draw broader conclusions.

Population density measures how crowded a place is, calculated by dividing the number of people by the area they live in, usually per square kilometre or mile. A city has a high density, with many people packed together, while remote countryside has a low one. It shows distribution, not just total numbers.

The main method is a census, an official count in which a government tries to record every person living in a place, usually at fixed intervals. Between censuses, populations are estimated using birth, death and migration records, along with surveys. These figures guide planning for services, housing and representation.

If a town has 20,000 residents, that figure is its population. On a larger scale, the population of a country is everyone living within its borders, and world population is the total number of people on Earth. The word always refers to the count of people in a defined place.