consortium

noun

con·​sor·​tium kən-ˈsȯr-sh(ē-)əm 

-ˈsȯr-tē-əm

plural consortia kən-ˈsȯr-sh(ē-)ə 

-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

: association, society

3

: the legal right of one spouse to the company, affection, and assistance of and to sexual relations with the other

Synonyms of consortium

• organization
• institute
• association
• institution
• society
• chamber
• fraternity
• group
• council
• board

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

To those ends, Iran could offer transparency, limits on enrichment, and a possible regional mechanism, such as an enrichment consortium. —Mohammad Javad Zarif, Foreign Affairs, 22 Dec. 2025

Led by Tecnicas Reunidas alongside Matteco, the Technological Institute for Children’s Products and Leisure (AIJU), and the University of Valencia, the consortium has advanced new catalysts, electrodes, and stack configurations designed to improve efficiency and performance. —Bojan Stojkovski, Interesting Engineering, 21 Dec. 2025

The deal, first reported by Axios Thursday, hasn’t satisfied China hawks who are taking issue with the fact that the content recommendation algorithm, TikTok’s secret sauce, will be licensed from ByteDance by the US consortium. —Reed Albergotti, semafor.com, 19 Dec. 2025

Italy’s wood supply chain consortium FederlegnoArredo, which represents the interests of the majority of Italian luxury furniture firms, said the declining appetite for foreign luxury goods in China, in addition to tariff pressures, has been among the furniture sector’s top challenges this year. —Sofia Celeste, Footwear News, 19 Dec. 2025

Word History

Etymology

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

First Known Use

1829, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Legal Definition

consortium

noun

con·​sor·​tium kən-ˈsȯr-shəm; -shē-əm 

plural consortia -shə, -shē-ə  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