synergy
noun
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An old saying, "The whole is greater than the sum of its parts", expresses the basic meaning of synergy. The word is sometimes used in a purely physical sense, especially when talking about drugs; sometimes a "cocktail" of drugs may be more effective than the sum of the effectiveness of each of the separate drugs. But the word is best known in the world of business. The notion that, when the right two companies merge, they'll produce a profitable synergy seemed exciting in the 1990s, when synergy became a trendy buzzword (even though it's actually been around since the 17th century). The idea of synergy was one factor in what became a "merger mania;" unfortunately, business synergy often turned out to be harder to achieve than to imagine.
Examples of synergy in a Sentence
Dan Howarth, Architectural Digest, 7 July 2025
Similarly, the phases of the moon embody the sacred synergy between the light and dark, which is also a symbol of the eternal cycle of creation and dissolution.
—Valerie Mesa, People.com, 2 July 2025
This kind of creative synergy is what separates a house that works well from a house that lives well.
—Elizabeth Hutchison Hicklin, Southern Living, 26 June 2025
Synchronicity and synergy at the Peninsula hotel Alex Koch, an actor and craftsman, scored an assortment of carpentry tools from Lynch's home woodshop.
—Emma Bowman, NPR, 23 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for synergy
Cite this Entry
“Synergy.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/synergy. Accessed 19 Jul. 2025.
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