consortium

noun

con·​sor·​tium kən-ˈsȯr-sh(ē-)əm How to pronounce consortium (audio)
-ˈsȯr-tē-əm
plural consortia kən-ˈsȯr-sh(ē-)ə How to pronounce consortium (audio)
-ˈsȯr-tē-ə
also consortiums
1
: an agreement, combination, or group (as of companies) formed to undertake an enterprise beyond the resources of any one member
A consortium of researchers decoded the honeybee genome.
2
3
: the legal right of one spouse to the company, affection, and assistance of and to sexual relations with the other

Examples of consortium in a Sentence

A Japanese consortium invested millions in the technology. a consortium for the prevention of animal cruelty
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The French Ministry of Culture and a consortium of public and private partners have worked together to manage and coordinate the monumental project. Dana Thomas, Architectural Digest, 20 Nov. 2024 Ideally, a consortium of merchants could pool data to help businesses build more accurate models that learn from diverse fraud patterns. Parth Vatsal, Forbes, 4 Nov. 2024 As Clavin describes, the violence of the period often was perpetrated by consortiums of big land owners intent on swallowing up their smaller competition. Chris Vognar, Los Angeles Times, 26 Oct. 2024 Block created a consortium of UHF broadcasters and lobbied the FCC for parity between UHF and VHF, which opened the door for a fourth network. Pat Saperstein, Variety, 14 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for consortium 

Word History

Etymology

Latin, fellowship, from consort-, consors — see consort entry 1

First Known Use

1829, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of consortium was in 1829

Dictionary Entries Near consortium

Cite this Entry

“Consortium.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/consortium. Accessed 9 Dec. 2024.

Legal Definition

consortium

noun
con·​sor·​tium kən-ˈsȯr-shəm; -shē-əm How to pronounce consortium (audio)
plural consortia -shə, -shē-ə How to pronounce consortium (audio) also consortiums
1
: an agreement, combination, or group (as of companies) formed to undertake an enterprise beyond the resources of any one member
2
[Medieval Latin, marital partnership, from Latin] : the right of one spouse to the company, affection, and assistance of and to sexual relations with the other
also : the right of a parent or child to the company, affection, and assistance of the other
suing for loss of consortium
compare society
Etymology

Latin, sharing, partnership, from consort-, consors sharer, partner

More from Merriam-Webster on consortium

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