cooperate

verb

co·​op·​er·​ate kō-ˈä-pə-ˌrāt How to pronounce cooperate (audio)
cooperated; cooperating; cooperates

intransitive verb

1
: to act or work with another or others : act together or in compliance
refused to cooperate with the police
2
: to associate with another or others for mutual benefit
nations cooperating to fight terrorism
cooperator noun

Examples of cooperate in a Sentence

It will be much easier if everyone cooperates. Several organizations cooperated in the relief efforts. The country agreed to cooperate with the other nations on the trade agreement. The mother asked the child to put on his pajamas, but the child refused to cooperate. Witnesses were willing to cooperate.
Recent Examples on the Web In April 2022, the league suspended him for 324 games after multiple women with allegations against him cooperated with the investigation. Jack Harris, Los Angeles Times, 7 Mar. 2024 Boeing and the National Transportation Safety Board argued Wednesday over whether the company has cooperated with investigators looking into the blowout of a door-plug panel on one of its planes during a flight in January. David Koenig, Quartz, 6 Mar. 2024 Warren-Darby, a Gloria aide since the mayor took office three years ago, would join a group of council members more inclined to cooperate with him and downplay any divisions at City Hall. David Garrick, San Diego Union-Tribune, 6 Mar. 2024 The sheriff’s office also reported that the driver called 911 and cooperated with the investigation. Fox19, The Enquirer, 6 Mar. 2024 Their termination letters asserted that they were being fired for failure to cooperate with a government or internal investigation but did not identify specific claims. Winston Cho, The Hollywood Reporter, 4 Mar. 2024 Multiple people familiar with that effort said that Dempster repeatedly refused to cooperate with the state party’s evaluation efforts. Max Greenwood, Miami Herald, 4 Mar. 2024 Imaginative play allows children to experiment with various social roles and learn to cooperate. Katrina Cossey, Parents, 1 Mar. 2024 Simmons said the three prisoners, all Grenadian residents, have been cooperating with the investigation and pleaded guilty to immigration violations in court. Justin Jouvenal, Washington Post, 27 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'cooperate.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Late Latin cooperatus, past participle of cooperari, from Latin co- + operari to work — more at operate

First Known Use

1582, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of cooperate was in 1582

Dictionary Entries Near cooperate

Cite this Entry

“Cooperate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cooperate. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

cooperate

verb
co·​op·​er·​ate kō-ˈäp-(ə-)ˌrāt How to pronounce cooperate (audio)
cooperated; cooperating
: to act, work, or associate with others so as to get something done

More from Merriam-Webster on cooperate

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