membership

noun

mem·​ber·​ship ˈmem-bər-ˌship 

plural memberships

1

: the state or status of being a member

2

: the body of members

an organization with a large membership

3

mathematics : the relation between an element of a set (see set entry 2 sense 21) or class and the set or class itself compare inclusion sense 3a

Examples of membership in a Sentence

What is the cost of a one-year membership?

Membership in the club doubled last year.

clubs that are hoping to increase their membership

The club has a large membership.

clubs that are hoping to increase their memberships

Recent Examples on the Web

Its membership spans producers, executive producers, distributors, sales agents, technical and post-production firms and dubbing houses. — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 11 Oct. 2026

That decision, upheld on appeal, put the onus on the Continuum of Care, an amorphous entity with a board and open membership that had long functioned as an appendage of LAHSA but actually had the statutory power to hire or fire the agency. — Los Angeles Times, 10 Oct. 2026

That said, their relative scarcity means that initiation and membership fees are a multiple of those charged at home. — Mark Cecil, Robb Report, 10 Oct. 2026

The wrinkle is that younger customers are more likely to sign up online, where memberships tend to churn at higher rates than those started in stores. — Alexa Lomonaco, CNBC, 9 Oct. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1614, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for membership

• authorship
• battleship
• censorship
• chairmanship
• chieftainship
• comradeship
• consulship
• craftsmanship
• dealership
• draftsmanship
• fellowship
• fingertip

Kids Definition

membership

noun

mem·​ber·​ship ˈmem-bər-ˌship 

1

: the state or status of being a member

2

: all the members of an organization