host
UK[həʊst]US[hoʊst]
n
a person who receives or entertains guests
n
a large number of people or things
n
an animal or plant on or in which a parasite or commensal organism lives
v
to act as a host at an event or for a television or radio program
Etymology
The modern English word 'host' has a complex history, stemming from two distinct Latin words that converged in form. The primary meaning, "one who entertains guests," originates from Latin hospes (meaning "host," "guest," or "stranger"), which itself comes from Proto-Indo-European ghos-pot-, meaning "lord of strangers." The secondary meaning, "a large multitude," derives from the unrelated Latin hostis, meaning "stranger" or "enemy." Over centuries, through Old French (hoste for "guest" and ost for "army"), these two words merged into the single Middle English spelling 'host,' carrying forward their distinct but related semantic threads of receiving outsiders and a multitude.
Analysis
The word 'host' is a simplex word derived from a single, indivisible root.
Examples
She will be the host of the annual awards ceremony.
The garden was visited by a host of colorful butterflies.
The virus requires a living host to replicate.