# omnibus

Pronunciation: say "OM-ni-buhs" US /ˈɑmnɪbəs/, UK/AUS /ˈɒmnɪbəs/

## Adjective

1. Containing a number of separate items within a single whole, such as a bill that bundles many measures or a review that covers several books.
   - Simple: Including many separate items or topics together in one single thing.
   - _The House passed an omnibus spending bill hours before the government would have run out of money._
   - _Her omnibus review weighed six debut novels against one another in a single long essay._

## Noun

2. A collection of previously released works or episodes, brought together in a single volume or broadcast.
   - Simple: A book or broadcast bringing together works or episodes that came out separately before.
   - _The publisher reissued the trilogy as a single omnibus with a new introduction by the author._
   - _The publisher's science fiction omnibuses each pair two short novels first printed in magazines._

## Verb

4. To combine separate legislative bills, or similar measures, into a single package.
   - Simple: To join several bills for new laws, or similar things, into one package.
   - _Congressional leaders threatened to omnibus the remaining spending bills if the committees missed their deadline._
   - _The state senate omnibused a dozen minor tax changes into a single end-of-session measure._

## Noun

3. A bus; a large vehicle that carries many passengers along roads. *(dated)*
   - Simple: A bus, a big vehicle that carries many people along roads.
   - _Every seat on the omnibus was taken, so she stood near the door all the way to the bridge._
   - _A line of omnibuses waited outside the station for the evening train._
7. An assistant waiter in a hotel or restaurant, who helps the waiters by clearing tables and carrying dishes. *(obsolete, US)*
   - Simple: A helper to a waiter, who clears tables and carries dishes.

## Verb

5. To go somewhere by omnibus, traveling or being carried as a passenger on a bus. *(dated)*
   - Simple: To travel by bus, or be taken somewhere on one.
6. To drive an omnibus, the large road vehicle that carries many passengers. *(dated)*
   - Simple: To be the driver of a big bus that carries people.

## Other meanings

- (adjective) Of a train or other transportation service, stopping at every station on the route, like a local, rather than running express.
- (noun) A stamp issue, usually commemorative, released at the same time by several countries as a joint issue.

## Origin

Latin omnibus, "for all," is the dative plural of omnis, "all." French used it in (voiture) omnibus, "(carriage) for all," and English borrowed the word from French.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/omnibus (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).