affiliate

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verb af·fil·i·ate \ ə-ˈfi-lē-ˌāt \

Definition of affiliate

affiliated; affiliating

transitive verb

1 a :to bring or receive into close connection as a member or branch

The medical school is affiliated with a hospital.

b :to associate as a member

affiliates herself with the local club

2 :to trace the origin of

affiliated Shakespeare's "Hamlet" to earlier plays

intransitive verb

:to connect or associate oneself :combine

refused to affiliate with any political party

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affiliation

play \-ˌfi-lē-ˈā-shən\ noun

See affiliate defined for English-language learners

See affiliate defined for kids

Examples of affiliate in a Sentence

Their group does not affiliate itself with any political party.

Recent Examples of affiliate from the Web

Given that the band’s members have all been affiliated with progressive causes, the song’s political stance was hardly a surprise.

— gillian g. gaar, The Seattle Times, "Sleater-Kinney, R.E.M. stars play in Filthy Friends Sept. 1 at Bumbershoot," 29 Aug. 2017
Also, Bernas said, beware of private, independent collectors who simply set up a jar or ask outright for donations, without being affiliated with a reputable charity.

— donna vickroy, Daily Southtown, "In aftermath of Harvey, experts say, 'Give, but give wisely'," 29 Aug. 2017
At the same time, a group affiliated with Islamic State has laid down roots in the country, part of a broad deterioration that has seen a record number of Afghan civilians killed.

— nick wadhams, Bloomberg.com, "Trump Embraces Afghanistan Ideas That Failed Obama, Bush," 22 Aug. 2017
Yankee Candle is not affiliated with Stanton Healthcare Belfast.

— brittney mcnamara, Teen Vogue, "A Crisis Pregnancy Center Seemingly Wants Others to Light Baby Powder Candles to Remind Women of Newborns," 22 Aug. 2017
The Confederate Memorial, erected in the early 20th century, is encircled by 482 graves of Rebel officers, enlisted men and others affiliated with their cause.

— t. rees shapiro, Washington Post, "Confederate Memorial in Arlington: Honoring Rebels on nation’s sacred ground," 17 Aug. 2017
Because he was not affiliated with a newspaper, television station or radio station, her message wouldn’t be filtered through a media outlet.

— megan friedman, Harper's BAZAAR, "7 Things You Didn’t Know About Princess Diana, According to Her Biographer," 28 July 2017
Mr. McCabe’s wife, Jill McCabe, received nearly $500,000 in 2015 during a losing campaign for the Virginia Senate from a political action committee affiliated with Gov. Terry McAuliffe, who is close friends with Hillary and Bill Clinton.

— peter baker, michael s. schmidt and maggie haberman, New York Times, "Citing Recusal, Trump Says He Wouldn’t Have Hired Sessions," 19 July 2017
Last year, Roberto Rincon-Fernandez, a Venezuelan national living in Houston, pleaded guilty in a Houston court for taking part in a $1 billion bribery scheme to secure contracts with PDVSA for companies affiliated with him.

— jose enrique arrioja, Bloomberg.com, "U.S. Readies Sanctions Against Top Venezuelans," 18 July 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'affiliate.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of affiliate

Medieval Latin affiliatus, past participle of affiliare to adopt as a son, from Latin ad- + filius son — more at feminine

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1767

See Words from the same year

affiliate

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noun af·fil·i·ate \ ə-ˈfi-lē-ət , -ˌāt \

Definition of affiliate

:an affiliated person or organization

the network's local affiliates

See affiliate defined for English-language learners

Examples of affiliate in a Sentence

Two of the company's regional affiliates lost money in the past year.
our local Humane Society is an affiliate of a national organization

Recent Examples of affiliate from the Web

Fans can watch the first episode right now on Facebook and YouTube, as well as all HBO affiliate portals.

— christopher rosa, Glamour, "A New 'Game of Thrones' Spinoff Is Coming to Tide You Over Between Seasons," 28 Aug. 2017
The girls basically grew up at the Baltimore Leadership School for Young Women, an affiliate of the Young Women’s Leadership Network and one of The Estée Lauder Companies’ longstanding partners.

— tina ferraro, Teen Vogue, "How the Lethal Ladies of Fox Searchlight’s "Step" Documentary Hope to Change the Beauty Industry," 21 Aug. 2017
Its Middletown affiliate, WNKN, was purchased by a Grant County, Kentucky country music station in July for $5.3 million.

— katie vogel, Cincinnati.com, "It's a long goodbye at WNKU," 18 Aug. 2017
A Part of Hearst Digital Media Popular Mechanics participates in various affiliate marketing programs, which means Popular Mechanics gets paid commissions on purchases made through our links to retailer sites.

— kyle mizokami, Popular Mechanics, "Watch America's Three Heavy Bombers Fly Wing to Wing," 16 Aug. 2017
Bon Appétit may earn a portion of sales from products that are purchased through our site as part of our affiliate partnerships with retailers.

— Bon Appetit, "Inside Elske, the #2 Best New Restaurant 2017," 15 Aug. 2017
On the field, the change to the Steamed Crabs moniker was not enough for the Orioles short-season class-A affiliate to break out of its recent slump.

— chris jeter, The Aegis, "Steamed Crabs for a night, Aberdeen IronBirds unable to hold off West Virginia," 12 Aug. 2017
A man named Zhang Zhijun controlled Xiangjian Information Technology, which invested alongside HNA and its affiliates in technology and airline information systems.

— david barboza, New York Times, "Behind a Chinese Powerhouse, a Web of Family Financial Ties," 18 July 2017
The Chicago Cubs promoted the former Boise State linebacker back to their Low-A affiliate in South Bend, Ind., on Friday, sending Martarano to the club for the second time this summer.

— michael lycklama, idahostatesman, "Ex-Boise State linebacker Joe Martarano continues yo-yo summer with Cubs," 15 July 2017

Origin and Etymology of affiliate

see ¹affiliate

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1793

See Words from the same year

affiliate Synonyms

Synonyms

chapter, branch, cell, council, local

Related Words

arm, division, wing; offshoot, subchapter; lodge, post

Other Broadcasting Terms

continuity, dissolve, fade, feed, remote, residual, spike, wipe

AFFILIATE Defined for English Language Learners

affiliate

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verb

Definition of affiliate for English Language Learners

: to closely connect (something or yourself) with or to something (such as a program or organization) as a member or partner

affiliate

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noun

Definition of affiliate for English Language Learners

: an organization (such as a television station) that is a member of a larger organization (such as a national network)

AFFILIATE Defined for Kids

affiliate

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verb af·fil·i·ate \ ə-ˈfi-lē-ˌāt \

Definition of affiliate for Students

affiliated; affiliating

:to associate as a member or partner

The spokesperson has long been affiliated with the charity.

Law Dictionary

affiliate

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verb af·fil·i·ate \ ə-ˈfi-lē-ˌāt \

legal Definition of affiliate

affiliated; affiliating

transitive verb

1 :to bring or receive into close association as a member or division

2 :to join or associate as a member or division

intransitive verb

:to connect or associate oneself —usually used with with

has just affiliated with the huge corporation

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affiliation

play \ə-ˌfi-lē-ˈā-shən\ noun

affiliate

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noun af·fil·i·ate \ ə-ˈfi-lē-ət \

legal Definition of affiliate

:an affiliated person or organization; specifically :a business entity effectively controlling or controlled by another or associated with others under common ownership or control — compare parent 2, subsidiary