verb
mill
To move around aimlessly in a crowd.
Guests mill around the lobby while they wait for dinner.
Etymology
To mill around compares a crowd's circulating, unproductive movement with the turning motion of a mill. The expression emphasizes motion without clear progress toward a destination.
More examples
- After the concert, fans milled around outside the stadium.
- A crowd mills about near the closed entrance.
- We find everyone milling around in the hallway.
Forms
mill · mills · milled · milling