PEONISM
Pe"on*ism, n.
Defn: Same as Peonage. D. Webster.
PEONY
Pe"o*ny, n.; pl. Peonies. Etym: [OE. pione, pioine, pioni, OF. pione,
F. pivoine, L. paeonia, Gr. Pæan.] (Bot.)
Defn: A plant, and its flower, of the ranunculaceous genus Pæonia. Of the four or five species, one is a shrub; the rest are perennial herbs with showy flowers, often double in cultivation. [Written also pæony, and piony.]
PEOPLE Peo"ple, n. Etym: [OE. peple, people, OF. pueple, F. peuple, fr. L. populus. Cf. Populage, Public, Pueblo.]
1. The body of persons who compose a community, tribe, nation, or race; an aggregate of individuals forming a whole; a community; a nation. Unto him shall the gathering of the people be. Gen. xlix. 10. The ants are a people not strong. Prov. xxx. 25. Before many peoples, and nations, and tongues. Rev. x. 11. Earth's monarchs are her peoples. Whitter . A government of all the people, by all the people, for all the people. T. Parker.
Note: Peopleis a collective noun, generally construed with a plural verb, and only occasionally used in the plural form (peoples), in the sense of nations or races.
2. Persons, generally; an indefinite number of men and women; folks; population, or part of population; as, country people; — sometimes used as an indefinite subject or verb, like on in French, and man in German; as, people in adversity. People were tempted to lend by great premiums. Swift . People have lived twenty-four days upon nothing but water. Arbuthnot .
3. The mass of comunity as distinguished from a special class; the commonalty; the populace; the vulgar; the common crowd; as, nobles and people. And strive to gain his pardon from the people. Addison .
4. With a possessive pronoun: (a) One's ancestors or family; kindred; relations; as, my people were English. (b) One's subjects; fellow citizens; companions; followers. "You slew great number of his people." Shak.