cooperative

1 of 2

adjective

co·​op·​er·​a·​tive kō-ˈä-p(ə-)rə-tiv 

-ˈä-pə-ˌrā-

1

a

: marked by cooperation

cooperative efforts

b

: marked by a willingness and ability to work with others

cooperative neighbors

2

: of, relating to, or organized as a cooperative

a cooperative store

3

: relating to or comprising a program of combined liberal arts and technical studies at different schools

cooperatively adverb

cooperativeness noun

cooperative

2 of 2

noun

: an enterprise or organization owned by and operated for the benefit of those using its services

Synonyms

Adjective

• collaborative
• collective
• joint
• combined
• mutual
• communal

Examples of cooperative in a Sentence

Adjective

The witness was very cooperative.

a cooperative space project undertaken by Russia and the U.S.

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

The companies pointed out that the laser weapon system offers new possibilities for counter-operations against non-cooperative targets. —Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 29 Oct. 2025

The driver, who was not injured, immediately stopped, remained at the scene and was cooperative, police said. —Emerson Clarridge, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 27 Oct. 2025

Noun

Aimé Sabon made the bold decision to stop selling his family’s grapes to a local cooperative in 1976 and instead built his own winery to produce his fantastic wines. —Mike Desimone, Robb Report, 23 Oct. 2025

Redevelopment of the housing cooperative have been in the works for years. —Robert A. Cronkleton, Kansas City Star, 23 Oct. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

see cooperate

Noun

see cooperate

First Known Use

Adjective

1603, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Noun

1829, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for cooperative

• accommodative
• accumulative
• adjudicative
• administrative
• agglutinative
• ameliorative
• appreciative
• assimilative
• associative
• authoritative
• collaborative
• deliberative

Kids Definition

cooperative

1 of 2 adjective

co·​op·​er·​a·​tive kō-ˈäp-(ə-)rət-iv 

-ˈäp-ə-ˌrāt-

1

: willing to cooperate

cooperative neighbors

2

: of, relating to, or organized as a cooperative

a cooperative store

cooperative apartments

cooperatively adverb

cooperativeness noun

cooperative

2 of 2 noun

: an association owned by and operated for the benefit of those using its services

Legal Definition

cooperative

1 of 2 adjective

: of, relating to, or organized as a cooperative

cooperative

2 of 2 noun

co·​op·​er·​a·​tive

: an enterprise or organization (as for banking and credit services or the ownership of residential property) that is owned by and operated for the benefit of those using its services

called also co-op

compare condominium sense 1