in a body

in a body

1. (formal, literary) As a group, together.
   • 1851 November 14, Herman Melville, “The Town-Ho’s Story”, in Moby-Dick; or, The Whale, 1st American edition, New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers; London: Richard Bentley, →OCLC, page 286:

     On the contrary, it seemed, that mainly at Steelkilt’s instigation, they had resolved to maintain the strictest peacefulness, obey all orders to the last, and, when the ship reached port, desert her in a body.

• “in a body”, in Collins English Dictionary.
• “in a body” (US) / “in a body” (UK) in Macmillan English Dictionary.
• “in a body”, in Cambridge English Dictionary, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire: Cambridge University Press, 1999–present.