affiliation

noun

af·​fil·​i·​a·​tion ə-ˌfi-lē-ˈā-shən How to pronounce affiliation (audio)
plural affiliations
: the state or relation of being closely associated or affiliated with a particular person, group, party, company, etc.
The radio station has maintained a longtime affiliation with the concert hall and often has featured performers as guests on the air.
A former Democrat, Joseph McCarthy had switched his affiliation and was elected in the Republican landslide of 1946 …Ted Widmer
… hundreds of businessmen owe their success to an affiliation with organized crime.William Bastone

Examples of affiliation in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Neither did Reddit, which famously banned its once-popular r/The_Donald forum, or Rumble, a right-wing video site known for its affiliation with Donald Trump Jr. The seven companies that replied each pointed me to their community guidelines. Caroline Mimbs Nyce, The Atlantic, 8 Mar. 2024 California has a top-two primary system, meaning the two candidates who receive the most votes, regardless of party affiliation, will land on the ballot in November. Jonathan Limehouse, USA TODAY, 6 Mar. 2024 Election symbols enable voters to identify the candidates’ party affiliations on paper ballots. Sarah Khan, Foreign Affairs, 5 Mar. 2024 No, volunteers are not involved in the politics of the convention and do not have to have any political affiliation. Alison Dirr, Journal Sentinel, 1 Mar. 2024 Religiously Affiliated Institutions Many of the first colleges and universities in this country (Harvard and College of William and Mary for example) were founded by religious groups or had a direct affiliation. Brennan Barnard, Forbes, 27 Feb. 2024 The survey included more than 10,000 people of different ages, genders, races, ethnicities, education levels and political affiliations who were randomly recruited to answer online questions about obesity and the new class of anti-obesity medications. TIME, 26 Feb. 2024 Comprehensive provider information, spanning demographics, specialties, taxonomy, practice locations, hospital affiliations and accessibility, is indispensable for compliance, precise payments and maintaining current, member-centric provider directories. Tammy Hawes, Forbes, 1 Mar. 2024 Shouldn’t being independent mean one can exercise the right to pick the candidate of one’s choice regardless of party affiliation instead of being tied to a single party? Tj Hutchinson, The Denver Post, 27 Feb. 2024

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

Word History

First Known Use

1791, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of affiliation was in 1791

Dictionary Entries Near affiliation

Cite this Entry

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

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