Common among the general public; generally accepted.
- Contrary to popular misconception, MacArthur Park is not the worst song ever written.2007 August 23, Joe Queenan, The Guardian
- Recent evidence demonstrates that caffeine addiction is becoming popular worldwide.2020 February 17, Fawaz Alasmari, “Caffeine induces neurobehavioral effects through modulating neurotransmitters”, in Saudi Pharmaceutical Journal, volume 28, number 4, →DOI, pages 445–451
Concerning the people; public.
Pertaining to or deriving from the people or general public.
- At the coming of Calvin thither, the form of their civil regiment was popular, as it continueth at this day: neither king, nor duke, nor nobleman of any authority or power over them, but officers chosen by the people out of themselves, to order all things with public consent.1594, Richard Hooker, Preface
- Luther in popular memory had become a saint, his picture capable of saving houses from burning down, if it was fixed to the parlour wall.2009, Diarmaid MacCulloch, A History of Christianity, Penguin, published 2010, page 645
(obsolete) Of low birth, not noble; vulgar, plebian.
- Popular and shallow-headed mindes, cannot perceive the grace or comelinesse, nor judge of a smooth and quaint discourse.1603, Michel de Montaigne, chapter 17, in John Florio, transl., The Essayes […], book II, London: […] Val[entine] Simmes for Edward Blount […], →OCLC
Aimed at ordinary people, as opposed to specialists etc.; intended for general consumption.
- As a work of popular science it is exemplary: the focus may be the numbers, but most of the mathematical legwork is confined to the appendices and the accompanying commentary is amusing and witty, as well as informed.2009 April 8, “Meltdown”, in The Economist
(obsolete) Cultivating the favour of the common people.
- Such popular humanity is treason.1712, Joseph Addison, Cato, A Tragedy
Liked by many people; generally pleasing, widely admired.
- The popular late Middle Ages fictional character Robin Hood, dressed in green to symbolize the forest, dodged fines for forest offenses and stole from the rich to give to the poor. But his appeal was painfully real and embodied the struggle over wood.2006, Edwin Black, chapter 2, in Internal Combustion
- They might have split 24 years ago, but the Smiths remain as popular as ever, and not just among those who remember them first time around.2011 October 2, The Observer
Adapted to the means of the common people; cheap.

Noun (1)

popular (plural populars)

A person who is popular, especially at a school.
- To pass time, Nicole (Tammy Lynn Michaels), the most vicious of the populars, decides they should play a little game. Earlier that day, in their feminist studies class, the women were discussing Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter, a novel ...2002, Stephen Tropiano, The Prime Time Closet: A History of Gays and Lesbians on TV, Hal Leonard Corporation, →ISBN
(in plural) An inexpensive newspaper with wide circulation.
- Serious newspapers boomed; the populars became tabloid supplements to television, with the television schedules and related features increasingly the core of the newspaper.1983, Jeremy Tunstall, The Media in Britain, Columbia University Press, →ISBN, page 75
A member of the Populares
- [...] when their ambassadors were come from Samos, and that they saw not only the populars, but also some others of their own party thought trusty before, to be now changed.1843, Thucydides, “The” History of the Grecian War, Translated by Thomas Hobbes, page 415

Noun (2) capitalized: Popular

Popular (plural Populars)

A member of any political party with "Popular" in the title, such as the Partido Popular in Spain or Popolari di Italia Domani in Italy

popular meaning in Hindi, Tamil, Marathi and Urdu

popular in Hindi

of or pertaining to the common people: लोकप्रसिद्ध lokaprasiddh
liked by many people: लोकप्रिय lokapriya, लोकप्रसिद्ध lokaprasiddh

popular in Tamil

புகழ்பெற்ற, பெயர்பெற்ற, பேர்பெற்ற, பலராலும் அறியப்பட்ட, பொதுவான, பிரபல

popular in Marathi

liked by many people: लोकप्रिय lokapriy

popular in Urdu

popular: عوامی avāmī

More languagesFewer languages

popular in Bengali: জনপ্রিয় jônôpriẏô
popular in Telugu: ప్రజా prajā, ప్రాచుర్యమైన prācuryamaina
popular in Malayalam: ജനസമ്മതിയുള്ള, സർവ്വപ്രിയനായ, പ്രചാരമേറിയ, ബഹുജന
popular in Kannada: ಮಂದಿ ಮೆಚ್ಚುವ, ಮಂದಿ ಮೆಚ್ಚಿಸುವ, ಕಡಿಮೆ ಬೆಲೆಯ, ಮೆಚ್ಚುಗೆಯ
popular in Punjabi: ਪ੍ਰਸਿੱਧ
popular in Gujarati: લોકપ્રિય lokapriya
popular in Odia: ପ୍ରାକୃତିକ prākrutika
popular in Assamese: জনপ্ৰিয় zonoprio, লোকপ্ৰিয় lükoprio
popular in Nepali: लोकप्रिय
popular in Arabic: شَعْبِيّ šaʕbiyy, مَحْبُوب maḥbūb
popular in Malay: popular
popular in Indonesian: populer
popular in Persian: رایج râyej, متداول motedâvel, پرطرفدار portarafdâr, محبوب mahbub
popular in Thai: ฮิต hít
popular in Vietnamese: nhân dân, bình nhân, đại chúng, phổ cập

Examples of popular in a sentence

Beethoven's "Symphony No. 5" in C minor is among his most popular.
The cinema is a popular place to take someone on a date.
The colloquial, and at times sarcastic, tone of her books makes her popular with teenagers.

All 40 example sentences with popular

Antonyms of popular

Forms of popular

Adjective
comparative	more popular
superlative	most popular
Noun
plural	populars
plural	Populars

Origin of popular

Inherited from Middle English populer, borrowed from Old French populaire, or borrowed from Latin populāris.

Phrases with popular

Words that rhyme with popular

copular

Questions about popular

What does popular mean?: Popular means common among the general public; generally accepted.
What is popular in Hindi?: Popular in Hindi is लोकप्रसिद्ध (lokaprasiddh), लोकप्रिय (lokapriya). See Popular meaning in Hindi.
What part of speech is popular?: Popular can be an adjective or a noun.
How do you pronounce popular?: Popular is pronounced /ˈpɒp.jʊ.lə/ (UK).

Words near popular in the dictionary

Last updated: 2026-09-02

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-us-popular.ogg.

Cite this entry: “popular.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/popular. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Adjective