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gather

/ˈɡæðər//ˈɡæðə/·verb
to bring scattered things together into one place
Fig. 1 — The whole yard is strewn with fallen leaves — red and gold and brown, lying just where they dropped.
01Definition

To gather is to bring scattered things together into one place — leaves into a heap, papers off a desk, a crowd into a square. It is the plainest, most general member of its family: where you collect by careful selection and things accumulate almost on their own, you simply gather whatever is spread out and draw it in. From the Old English gaderian, 'to bring together', it serves the concrete (gather wood) and the abstract alike (gather evidence, gather your thoughts).

02In use
  • iAs dusk fell, the guide gathered the scattered hikers before anyone could disperse into the woods.
  • iiShe gathered the loose pages from the floor and tried to discern which draft was the latest.
  • iiiThe children gathered driftwood along the shore to build up a bonfire for the evening.
03Collocations
  • gather information
  • gather evidence
  • gather a crowd
  • gather momentum
  • gather speed

Family gathering (noun)

04Relations

=collect, assemble, accumulate, amass, round up

≠scatter, disperse, distribute

05Compared
PairThe difference
gather vs accumulatean amount slowly growing over time → accumulate; bringing the scattered in → gather.
gather vs amassa large amount deliberately piled up → amass; simply bringing the scattered together → gather.
gather vs assemblefit parts together in order, or gather for a purpose → assemble; bring scattered things into one place → gather.
gather vs build upsomething develops or strengthens → build up; you bring the scattered in → gather (build up muscle, gather sticks).
gather vs clusterpack things into a tight, dense bunch by nearness → cluster; bring scattered things loosely into one place → gather.

Also compared with collect, combine, come together, congregate, consolidate, disband, disperse, dissipate, dissolve, garner, integrate, join, pile up, scatter, unite

06TOEFL & IELTS

The versatile everyday verb for bringing things together — 'gather data/evidence/information' is common across TOEFL and IELTS, and the idioms 'gather momentum/speed' and 'gather your thoughts' are useful in speaking. Hold the nuance against its near-synonyms: gather is the broad bring-together, collect adds deliberate selection, and accumulate is passive build-up over time.

07Asked
What does 'I gather' mean?
It means 'I understand' or 'I've concluded' — from things heard or noticed rather than told outright: 'I gather you're leaving' means I've pieced that together. Here gather is close to infer: you draw a conclusion together from scattered hints, the same way you gather scattered leaves. It is a polite, slightly formal way to check an impression.
What does 'gather momentum' or 'gather speed' mean?
To build it up gradually — 'the train gathered speed', 'the campaign gathered momentum'. Here gather means to accumulate a quality steadily as you go, not to bring objects together. The same frame gives 'gather strength' and 'gather pace'. It captures a slow build toward full force, one increment at a time.
What is the difference between gather and collect?
The quick tell: gather is the broad bring-together of whatever is scattered, while collect adds deliberate selection toward a set you keep — you gather leaves but collect stamps. The two are set side by side, with both animated scenes, on the collect vs gather page in the 'Compared' list above.
Is 'gather' transitive or intransitive?
Both. Transitively, you gather something ('gather the papers', 'gather evidence'). Intransitively, things gather on their own ('a crowd gathered', 'clouds are gathering'). This flexibility sets it apart from collect, which almost always needs an object — you can say 'a crowd gathered' but not 'a crowd collected' in the same everyday way.
What does 'gather your thoughts' mean?
To pause and compose yourself mentally before speaking or acting — 'give me a moment to gather my thoughts'. The scattered-things image runs underneath: your thoughts are spread out, and you draw them into order first. It is a natural, idiomatic phrase for buying a beat in a speaking test or a tense conversation.
What is the difference between garner and gather?
The quick tell: gather is the broad, everyday bring-together, while garner implies slowly earned gains like praise or support. The full contrast, with both animated scenes, is on the garner vs gather page in the 'Compared' list above, alongside this verb's other pairings.
What does gather mean in sewing?
To draw a length of fabric into small, even folds by pulling a thread and bunching the cloth along it — a gathered skirt or sleeve is fuller because the material has been pushed together on a running stitch. It is the same core as everywhere else: loose length drawn in and bunched, only here the scattered thing is the cloth itself.