Packs

Part of speech: verb, noun

Pronunciation: /pæks/

Definitions

1. Collections of items bundled or wrapped together ; groups of animals living or hunting together ; to place objects into containers or bags for storage or transport
2. Sets of objects gathered into a single unit ; a social or hunting group of animals ; the act of arranging belongings tightly into a space
3. Multiple units of items tied or boxed collectively ; groups of creatures associated for cooperation ; to prepare and store items by placing them inside containers

Etymology: "Packs" is the plural of "pack," so its history is that of the noun. The root sense is simply a bundle: Proto-Germanic "pakkô" meant a bundle or package, and the same word survives in Dutch "pak," German "Pack," and Swedish "packe," all still meaning a bundle or parcel. English picked it up in Middle English as "pak" or "pakke," drawing on either Old English or Middle Dutch forms, which is why the word looks so similar across the North Sea languages. The verb followed from the noun. Middle English "pakken" meant to bundle goods together for transport, and the sense of putting items into a container is the direct extension of that bundling idea. The animal and group senses, such as a pack of wolves or a pack of cards, grew from the same notion of things gathered and bound into one unit.

Synonyms: bundles, packages

Antonyms: unpacks, dissolves