Definition of co-opt
transitive verb
1 a
:to choose or elect as a member
- members co-opted to the committee
b
:to appoint as a colleague or assistant
2 a
:to take into a group (such as a faction, movement, or culture) :absorb, assimilate
- The students are co-opted by a system they serve even in their struggle against it.
- —A. C. Danto
b
:take over, appropriate
- a style co-opted by advertisers
