Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary · 1913

People

People (pē"p'l) , noun

[Old English peple, people, Old French pueple, French peuple, from Latin populus. Compare Populage, Public, Pueblo.]

1.
The body of persons who compose a community, tribe, nation, or race; an aggregate of individuals forming a whole; a community; a nation.
Unto him shall the gathering of the people be. — Gen. xlix. 10
The ants are a people not strong. — Bible (KJV) - Proverb xxx. 25
Before many peoples, and nations, and tongues. — Rev. x. 11
Earth's monarchs are her peoples. — Whitter
A government of all the people, by all the people, for all the people. — T. Parker

Peopleis a collective noun, generally construed with a plural verb, and only occasionally used in the plural form (peoples), in the sense of nations or races.

2.
Persons, generally; an indefinite number of men and women; folks; population, or part of population; as, country people; -- sometimes used as an indefinite subject or verb, like on in French, and man in German; as, people in adversity.
People were tempted to lend by great premiums. — Swift
People have lived twenty-four days upon nothing but water. — Arbuthnot
3.
The mass of community as distinguished from a special class; the commonalty; the populace; the vulgar; the common crowd; as, nobles and people.
And strive to gain his pardon from the people. — Addison
4.
(a) One's ancestors or family; kindred; relations; as, my people were English.
(b)
One's subjects; fellow citizens; companions; followers.
You slew great number of his people. — Shakespeare

People (pē"p'l) , transitive verb

[Compare Old French popler, puepler, French puepler. Compare Populate.]

To stock with people or inhabitants; to fill as with people; to populate.
Peopled heaven with angels. — Dryden
As the gay motes that people the sunbeams. — Milton