association

noun as·so·ci·a·tion \ ə-ˌsō-sē-ˈā-shən , -shē- \

Updated on: 19 Apr 2018

Definition of association

1 a : the act of associating

b : the state of being associated : combination, relationship

had a long association with the firm

2 : an organization of persons having a common interest : society

an alumni association

3 : something linked in memory or imagination with a thing or person

His former school has only negative associations for him.

4 : the process of forming mental connections or bonds between sensations, ideas, or memories

5 : the aggregation of chemical species (see ¹species 1e) to form (as with hydrogen bonds) loosely bound complexes (see ¹complex 3)

6 : a major unit in ecological community organization characterized by essential uniformity and usually by two or more dominant species

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associational

play \-sh(ə-)nᵊl\ adjective

See association defined for English-language learners

See association defined for kids

Examples of association in a Sentence

an association of local business leaders
They denied having any association with terrorists.
They have a long association with the school and have donated millions of dollars to it.

Recent Examples of association from the Web

Low funding and teacher pay, the association says, is making the job less attractive to college graduates and prodding teachers to leave the profession early, and led to a shortage of fully qualified teachers.

— jason hanna and sara weisfeldt, CNN, "Colorado teachers plan their own Capitol rally Monday," 15 Apr. 2018
But the sumo association has reason to be mindful of women’s feelings.

— The Economist, "Why women are not allowed in sumo rings—even to save a life," 14 Apr. 2018
The association said hospitals collectively would have to hire at least 4,500 new nurses to comply, at a cost of $880 million per year.

— margeaux sippell, BostonGlobe.com, "Mass. business groups oppose nurses’ ballot question," 12 Apr. 2018
The association said median growth from 2016 to 2017 for the breweries was 216 percent.

— marc bona, cleveland.com, "Royal Docks, Platform named among fastest-growing breweries in U.S.," 10 Apr. 2018
Instead, the association said that Marchant can only fly a flag if the pole is attached to the house, WLWT reported.

— josh magness, miamiherald, "Veteran must move US flag, HOA says. That’s ‘an attack on everybody’s patriotism,’ he says | Miami Herald," 3 Apr. 2018
The association said that poodles also leaped on the list from number 10 to number six this year.

— johnny diaz, Sun-Sentinel.com, "The most favorite dog breeds in South Florida," 29 Mar. 2018
Last year, Connecticut’s 6,700 technology businesses employed 140,600 workers, or about 7.6 percent of the state’s workforce, the association said.

— rebecca lurye, courant.com, "Tech Industry Contributes $16.2B To Connecticut Economy," 28 Mar. 2018
The association said that new tariffs could dampen demand for new construction.

— katherine feser, Houston Chronicle, "Report: Houston, Midland among big gainers for construction jobs," 16 Mar. 2018

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

Origin and Etymology of association

see ¹associate

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1535

in the meaning defined at sense 1a

See Words from the same year

association Synonyms

ASSOCIATION Defined for English Language Learners

association

noun

Definition of association for English Language Learners

: an organized group of people who have the same interest, job, etc.
: a connection or relationship between things or people
: a feeling, memory, or thought that is connected to a person, place, or thing

ASSOCIATION Defined for Kids

association

noun as·so·ci·a·tion \ ə-ˌsō-sē-ˈā-shən , -shē- \

Definition of association for Students

1 : a connection or relationship between things or people

She studied the association between sugar intake and cavity formation.

2 : an organization of persons having a common interest

an athletic association

3 : a feeling, memory, or thought connected with a person, place, or thing

His grandparents' old house had happy associations for him.

Medical Dictionary

association

noun as·so·ci·a·tion \ ə-ˌsō-sē-ˈā-shən, -shē- \

medical Definition of association

1 : the act of associating

2 : something linked in memory or imagination with a thing or person

3 : the process of forming mental connections or bonds between sensations, ideas, or memories

4 : the aggregation of chemical species to form (as with hydrogen bonds) loosely bound chemical complexes — compare polymerization 1

—

associational

play \-shnəl, -shən-ᵊl\ adjective

Law Dictionary

association

noun as·so·ci·a·tion

legal Definition of association

1 : a group of persons who share common interests or a common purpose and who are organized with varying degrees of formality — compare corporation

2 : the act of having contact or communication with or keeping company with another

freedom of association

3 : the sharing (as by an aider and abettor) in the criminal intent of a person who commits a crime

Learn More about association

See words that rhyme with association Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for association Spanish Central: Translation of association Nglish: Translation of association for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of association for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about association

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association

Definition of association

associational

Examples of association in a Sentence

Recent Examples of association from the Web

Origin and Etymology of association

association Synonyms

Synonyms

Antonyms

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Phrases Related to ASSOCIATION

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ASSOCIATION Defined for English Language Learners

association

Definition of association for English Language Learners

ASSOCIATION Defined for Kids

association

Definition of association for Students

Medical Dictionary

association

medical Definition of association

associational

Law Dictionary

association

legal Definition of association

Learn More about association

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