Refers to a group of people, often with a slightly negative or informal connotation, like a gang or a bunch. Can also be used neutrally for a party or set of people.
He hangs out with a bad crowd.
They act as a group.
pupil; student; schoolchild
walking; on foot
believer; adherent
apostle; disciple
rioters; mob; insurgents
believer; follower; layperson
student; scholar; follower of learning
saint · Christian; follower of Christ
conspirators; faction; cabal; clique
fruitless effort; wasted effort; futility
apprentice; disciple
empty-handed; bare hands · penniless; without resources
follower of a religion; believer; Jōdo Shinshū practitioner
foot race; running race
gambler; professional gambler
spindly growth; leggy growth; unproductive growth
Buddhist priests; monks
outlaw; rebel; rioter
condemned person; prisoner
bandit; outlaw
rebels; insurgents
prisoner; convict
believer; follower
penal servitude; imprisonment with hard labor
foot soldier; footman
dying in vain; pointless death
Standard kanji spelling for this noun.
Kana spelling is sometimes used in informal writing or when the kanji is considered difficult.
The kanji 徒 originally means 'on foot' or 'follower', and by extension came to refer to a group of followers or a party. The exact historical derivation of the reading と is uncertain.