flash mob

Definition

A group of people who rapidly assemble, perform an unusual and seemingly pointless act, and then quickly disperse.

Etymology

Perhaps from flash crowd, a term coined by Larry Niven in Flash Crowd (1973), a story about cheap teleportation in the future.

Example Sentences

• "Called into being on short notice by Web sites and e-mail distribution lists, flash mobs meet at an appointed time, engage in some organized spontaneity for a few minutes, then rapidly disperse. The activities are innocent, if mysterious, and tend to bring together loose groupings of surprisingly conventional looking young adults."