passel

passel pronunciation

/PASS-ul/

Meaning

Means a large group or quantity when you aren't counting exact heads. A passel of kids, a passel of guineas, a passel of trouble. Rural Southern and Appalachian talk loves it for crowds that feel like more than a handful and less than a census. Same neighborhood as heap, mess, and whole lot.

How folks use it

• “We've got a passel of cousins coming for Sunday dinner.”
• “He hauled a passel of corn on that old mule.”

Origin and etymology

A worn-down form of parcel, from the older sense meaning a collection or quantity (not just a wrapped package). Colloquial American use for "a large number" shows up by the 1830s. Dropping the r after a vowel is the same habit that gave English bust from burst and cuss from curse. Strong in Southern and mountain speech.

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