Meaning

noun a person who invites guests to a social event (such as a party in his or her own home) and who is responsible for them while they are there

noun a vast multitude

noun an animal or plant that nourishes and supports a parasite; it does not benefit and is often harmed by the association

originEtymology tree Proto-Indo-European *gʰóstis Proto-Indo-European *pótis Proto-Indo-European *gʰóstipotis Proto-Italic *hostipotis Latin hospes Old French ostebor. Middle English hoste English host From Middle English hoste, from Old French oste (French: hôte), from Latin hospitem, accusative of hospes (“a host, also a sojourner, visitor, guest; hence, a foreigner, a stranger”), from *hostipotis,…

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 3.0