colloquium
noun
col·lo·qui·um
kə-ˈlō-kwē-əm 
plural colloquiums or colloquia
kə-ˈlō-kwē-ə
: a usually academic meeting at which specialists deliver addresses on a topic or on related topics and then answer questions relating to them
… a nine-session scholar-led colloquium to introduce teachers to literary texts by and about minorities …—
Bruce Fraser
Bruce Fraser
Did you know?
A colloquy is a conversation, and especially an important, high-level discussion. Colloquy and colloquium once meant the same thing, though today colloquium always refers to a conference. Because of its old "conversation" meaning, however, a colloquium is a type of conference with important question-and-answer periods.
Examples of colloquium in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
At a recent colloquium on critical materials for AI hosted by Professor Alondra Nelson at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton New Jersey, researchers lamented that confidentiality concerns often prevented forensic accounting of material needs for AI.
—Saleem H. Ali, Forbes.com, 21 July 2025
Shirley Manson has a special connection with Argentina, particularly with its feminist movements; the singer even participated in a colloquium there in 2019.
—Tere Aguilera, Billboard, 19 Mar. 2025
But this did not go down well with some of the colloquium guests.
—Tania Roettger, The Dial, 5 Dec. 2024
In 2021 and 2022, Cannon took weeklong trips to the luxurious Sage Lodge in Pray, Montana, for legal colloquiums sponsored by George Mason, which named its law school for Scalia thanks to $30 million in gifts that conservative judicial kingmaker Leonard Leo helped organize.
—Marilyn W. Thompson, ProPublica, 17 Sep. 2024
In 2017 Perlin organized a colloquium on Eunice Foote (an American scientist who, in 1856, was the first to argue that putting greenhouse gasses into the atmosphere could cause climate change).
—Eugene Linden, TIME, 21 Apr. 2024
In the math department, there were people running this colloquium series called Math and Social Responsibility — very Berkeley-like.
—Ben Brubaker, Quanta Magazine, 3 Jan. 2024
Following the colloquium, the AHA will offer a limited-capacity listening tour of the Wallace House in Shelby County.
—Shauna Stuart | Sstuart@al.com, al, 8 Sep. 2023
Lord began by outlining plans for an online colloquium series, which would be open to the public, and which would try to involve people in their research on topics ranging from racial scapegoating in previous pandemics to voting during national crises.
—Andrew Dickson, The New Yorker, 9 Dec. 2020
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Saleem H. Ali, Forbes.com, 21 July 2025
Shirley Manson has a special connection with Argentina, particularly with its feminist movements; the singer even participated in a colloquium there in 2019.
—Tere Aguilera, Billboard, 19 Mar. 2025
But this did not go down well with some of the colloquium guests.
—Tania Roettger, The Dial, 5 Dec. 2024
In 2021 and 2022, Cannon took weeklong trips to the luxurious Sage Lodge in Pray, Montana, for legal colloquiums sponsored by George Mason, which named its law school for Scalia thanks to $30 million in gifts that conservative judicial kingmaker Leonard Leo helped organize.
—Marilyn W. Thompson, ProPublica, 17 Sep. 2024
In 2017 Perlin organized a colloquium on Eunice Foote (an American scientist who, in 1856, was the first to argue that putting greenhouse gasses into the atmosphere could cause climate change).
—Eugene Linden, TIME, 21 Apr. 2024
In the math department, there were people running this colloquium series called Math and Social Responsibility — very Berkeley-like.
—Ben Brubaker, Quanta Magazine, 3 Jan. 2024
Following the colloquium, the AHA will offer a limited-capacity listening tour of the Wallace House in Shelby County.
—Shauna Stuart | Sstuart@al.com, al, 8 Sep. 2023
Lord began by outlining plans for an online colloquium series, which would be open to the public, and which would try to involve people in their research on topics ranging from racial scapegoating in previous pandemics to voting during national crises.
—Andrew Dickson, The New Yorker, 9 Dec. 2020
Cite this Entry
“Colloquium.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/colloquium. Accessed 31 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationLegal Definition
colloquium
noun
col·lo·qui·um
kə-ˈlō-kwē-əm
: the part of a complaint for defamation in which the plaintiff avers that the defamatory remarks related to him or her
Etymology
Latin, talk, discussion, from colloqui to converse
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