Gathering means coming together in one place, or the group of people who have come together. When your family has a gathering for Thanksgiving, everyone assembles at one house to share a meal. A school might hold a gathering in the auditorium for an assembly, bringing all the students and teachers into one space.

The word captures both the action and the result. You can be gathering firewood in the forest, collecting it piece by piece, or you can attend a gathering of the chess club, where members meet to play and discuss strategies. Storm clouds gathering on the horizon means they're collecting and massing together, often suggesting something big is about to happen.

A gathering can be planned or spontaneous. A wedding is a carefully organized gathering, while kids gathering around an interesting discovery on the playground happens naturally and without planning. The word suggests people or things drawing together, like metal shavings pulled toward a magnet. When a crowd is gathering, more people keep arriving and the group grows larger.

The feeling of the word is usually warm and social: gatherings bring people together for a shared purpose, whether that's celebration, learning, or simply enjoying each other's company.