What does "most" actually means? By definition, there are no exact definition. Everyone has their own understanding of "most". Let's discuss. For each of these example, only some of you would agree with the definition, depending on how you define "most." Hence, you most probably find only one, or at most a few, but most probably not all definition you agree with. Plus, this list isn't exclusive, as it only includes those that one could think about.

Say, we divide a pizza among several person, not equally. The one holding the largest portion of that pizza can be called "most." In mathematics, consider that the largest portion of the pizza is 30%, but since the second most is 25%, third most 18%, etc. even if the number 30% isn't a lot compared to 100%, it's still "most."

Next, anything more than or equal to 50% (half of the population) can be considered "most." Perhaps this don't need any explanations?

"Most" could be perspective than mathematical. When you 'feel' like 'many' around you (your friends, families, colleagues) agree/disagree with something, you'd conclude that "most" of them are (fill in the blanks). This is more of a selective bias than a misunderstanding. Most probably we get together with like-minded people, so it gives us a false impression that "most" people are (whatever); especially when we falsely assume these like-minded people are generally representative of the general population when they're not.

Even a very small population can cause such misunderstanding. Example, if you ask just one person, and he says yes, you brain can trick you to assume you had asked lots of people and everyone says yes. Less extreme, if you ask 2 or 3 person, and they say yes, you also come to conclusion even if your brain don't trick you to assume you ask many, as your brain can consider 2 or 3 person "many."

In conclusion, the vagueness of "most" means we need more mathematically accurate words to clarify what we really mean, than let them be vague. Otherwise, what you convey will almost certainly get distorted because your "most" most probably (ahem, perhaps 80% probable) isn't the same as others' "most."

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Edit 14/04/2024: The Meaning Of "Many"

Many people confused "many" with "most." Let's use an example. If there are a thousand people in total, and 500 wore dresses, we could say, many people wore dresses. How about, if there are a million people, and 500 wore dresses? Could we say "many" wore dresses? Yes, of course. 500 is a lot of people. Hence, "many" does not have an association with the total no. of people; it does not anchor itself to comparison. Instead, it's hedged on an absolute number. 500 people is a lot of people, in one's point of view, regardless of the total no. of people. The number 500 isn't any magic number, replace it with your internal anchor on what you consider "many."

"Many" isn't dependent on a percentage to the total.