corporate

adjective

cor·​po·​rate ˈkȯr-p(ə-)rət 

1

a

: formed into an association and endowed by law with the rights and liabilities of an individual : incorporated

b

: of or relating to a corporation

a plan to reorganize the corporate structure

c

: of, relating to, or being the large corporations of a country or region considered as a unit

the latest trend in corporate America

d

: having qualities (such as commercialism or lack of originality) associated with large corporations or attributed to their influence or control

corporate rock music

corporate art

2

: of, relating to, or formed into a unified body of individuals

Human law arises by the corporate action of a people …

—George H. Sabine

3

: corporative sense 2

corporately adverb

Synonyms

• commercial
• marketable
• mass-market
• salable
• saleable

Examples of corporate in a Sentence

We have to change the corporate structure to survive.

A bunch of corporate types in suits were sitting at the table in the conference room.

He is one of the most powerful men in corporate America.

The business is a corporate entity.

Recent Examples on the Web

Owens, 36, told the Miami Herald. Owens, who has spent 15 years in corporate America in HR and recruiting, tapped into his creative passion during the pandemic, recording dozens of songs under the name King Tetrus and uploading them to streaming services like SoundCloud and Spotify. —Michael Butler, Miami Herald, 17 May 2025

Research could be done via federal entities, universities, startups, private or public companies, but there will obviously be an immense shortfall in these efforts without the government (maybe the optimistic view is that corporate America becomes the preferred partner for this administration. —Shivaram Rajgopal, Forbes.com, 17 May 2025

Jeffrey Gibson’s long path to art stardom May 4, 2025 Charles A. Bibbs, 77 Bibbs worked in corporate America for 25 years before becoming an artist full time. —Karla Marie Sanford, Los Angeles Times, 16 May 2025

The decision to drop the case against Boeing is another sign that the Trump administration could go easier on prosecution of corporate misdeeds than had been the case under the Biden administration. —Chris Isidore, CNN Money, 16 May 2025

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Latin corporātus, past participle of corporāre "to form into a body, form (an organized social group)," verbal derivative of corpor-, corpus "body, organized group of people" — more at midriff

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing corporate

• anti-corporate
• body corporate
• corporate conglomeration
• corporate ladder
• corporate welfare
• corporate-wide
• inter-corporate

Kids Definition

corporate

adjective

cor·​po·​rate ˈkȯr-p(ə-)rət 

1

a

: formed into a corporation

b

: of, relating to, or being a corporation

take corporate action

2

: of, relating to, or being a whole composed of individuals

united together and took corporate action

corporately adverb

Legal Definition

corporate

1 of 2 adjective

cor·​po·​rate ˈkȯr-pə-rət 

: of or relating to a business corporation

corporate

2 of 2 noun

: a bond issued by a business corporation