fellowship

1 of 2

noun

fel·​low·​ship ˈfe-lə-ˌship How to pronounce fellowship (audio)
-lō-
1
: companionship, company
looking for the fellowship of friendly people
2
a
: community of interest, activity, feeling, or experience
their fellowship in crimeA. J. Ayer
b
: the state of being a fellow or associate
3
: a company of equals or friends : association
a youth fellowship
4
: the quality or state of being comradely
meaningful communication for building trust and fellowship
5
obsolete : membership, partnership
6
a
: the position of a fellow (as of a university)
applied for a research fellowship in physics
b
: the stipend of a fellow
c
: a foundation for the providing of such a stipend

fellowship

2 of 2

verb

fellowshipped also fellowshiped ˈfe-lə-ˌshipt How to pronounce fellowship (audio)
-lō-
; fellowshipping also fellowshiping ˈfe-lə-ˌshi-piŋ How to pronounce fellowship (audio)
-lō-

intransitive verb

: to join in fellowship especially with a church member

transitive verb

: to admit to fellowship (as in a church)

Examples of fellowship in a Sentence

Noun traditions that bind us together in fellowship members of a law firm who violated just about every ethical principle that the legal fellowship holds dear
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
In 1961, he was granted a Harvard University fellowship, and studied state-of-the-art transplant procedures at Peter Bent Brigham Hospital (now part of Brigham and Women’s Hospital), one of Harvard’s teaching hospitals and where the first kidney transplant took place in 1954. Brian Murphy, Washington Post, 2 Mar. 2024 An article on Monday about Chinese émigrés who are creating community and engaging in civic discussions through bookstores referred incorrectly to the Nieman fellowship’s academic affiliation. New York Times, 27 Feb. 2024 Rouse is a maternal-fetal-medicine doctor in Indianapolis who did her fellowship in high-risk obstetrics. Peter Slevin, The New Yorker, 25 Feb. 2024 Now, friends gather in fellowship to break Catalan-style toasted bread and sip Spanish sangria. Usa Today Network, USA TODAY, 15 Feb. 2024 This includes a Development Day, which brings visitors from the district, who tempt Janine (Quinta Brunson) with the offer of a fellowship at the district level. Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 7 Feb. 2024 Chris McCormick, associate professor in the creative writing program at Minnesota State University, Mankato, is one of 35 writers in the nation to receive a $25,000 National Endowment for the Arts writing fellowship. Mary Ann Grossmann, Twin Cities, 4 Feb. 2024 More than 1000 researchers are nominated each year for the fellowships. Michael T. Nietzel, Forbes, 21 Feb. 2024 The Academy’s other programs include its biannual daylong Next Level Summit and the Original Voices fellowship and accelerator for documentary filmmakers. Rebecca Sun, The Hollywood Reporter, 15 Feb. 2024
Verb
Pfizer and two law firms, Morrison Foerster and Perkins Coie, opened their diversity fellowships last year to students of all races, after lawsuits against them alleged racial discrimination. Steve Lohr, New York Times, 22 Jan. 2024 Blum’s group has also found success targeting major law firms over their diversity fellowships: Three big law firms — Perkins Coie, Morrison Foerster and Winston & Strawn — opened their fellowships for students of color to applicants of all races and backgrounds after being sued. Taylor Telford, Washington Post, 18 Feb. 2024 Those firms have all since opened their diversity fellowships to applicants of all races and backgrounds, and Mr. Blum’s group dropped the suits. Emma Goldberg, New York Times, 22 Jan. 2024 Soon after, white-shoe law firms like Morrison Foerster and Perkins Coie dialed back their diversity fellowships after being sued by conservative activist Edward Blum, the driving force in the Harvard case. Taylor Telford, Washington Post, 5 Jan. 2024 After Blum’s group, the American Alliance for Equal Rights in August sued the Perkins Coie and Morrison Foerster law firms, both opened their diversity fellowships to law students from all backgrounds. Julian Mark, Washington Post, 6 Nov. 2023 All challenge the use of racial preferences, whether in deciding who to hire, selecting contractors or awarding fellowships. Julian Mark, Washington Post, 6 Nov. 2023 Through a different organization — the American Alliance for Equal Rights — Blum in August sued corporate law firms Perkins Coie and Morrison Foerster, alleging their diversity fellowships illegally discriminated on the basis of race. Julian Mark, Washington Post, 18 Oct. 2023 Barroso had been executive sponsor for Google’s Hispanic and Latinx employee group and a program awarding fellowships to doctoral students in Latin America. WIRED, 21 Sep. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'fellowship.' 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

Noun

Middle English felaweschipe, going back to Old English fēolagscipe, from fēolaga fellow + -scipe -ship

First Known Use

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

Time Traveler
The first known use of fellowship was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near fellowship

Cite this Entry

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

Kids Definition

fellowship

noun
fel·​low·​ship
ˈfel-ō-ˌship
1
: a friendly relationship among people
2
: a sharing of interest or feeling
3
: a group with similar interests
4
a
: the position of a fellow (as of a university)
b
: the funds granted a fellow

More from Merriam-Webster on fellowship

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