merger

merg·er | \ ˈmər-jər

Definition of merger

1 law : the absorption of an estate, a contract, or an interest in another, of a minor offense in a greater, or of a cause of action into a judgment

2a : the act or process of merging

b : absorption by a corporation of one or more others also : any of various methods of combining two or more organizations (such as business concerns)

Synonyms & Antonyms Example Sentences Learn More about merger

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Examples of merger in a Sentence

The law firm announced its $50 million merger with one of its competitors. If the proposed merger of the two oil companies goes through, it would be bad for the economy.

Recent Examples on the Web The account merger is just one of many changes Google has been making to the Nest ecosystem lately. — Ron Amadeo, Ars Technica, "The death of “Works with Nest” begins now with Google account migrations," 20 Aug. 2019 The merger is coming at the perfect time, as nearly every media company in the game looks to get into streaming. — Julia Alexander, The Verge, "Star Trek is ViacomCBS’s best hope for streaming greatness," 14 Aug. 2019 The merger is unwelcome news for American consumers, notwithstanding requirements for the two firms to divest assets and share spectrum with Dish, a satellite-TV provider. — The Economist, "SoftBank’s transformation into an investment powerhouse continues," 1 Aug. 2019 The merger is not yet complete, DeepMind Health said. — Jeremy Kahn, Fortune, "DeepMind’s Latest A.I. Predicts Kidney Injuries 48 Hours in Advance," 31 July 2019 The study determined such a merger was not legally possible. — Cathy Kozlowicz, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Lisbon officials want to incorporate the town as a village, but agree to discuss a cooperative plan with Sussex," 10 July 2019 Once the merger is complete, United Technologies shareholders will own approximately 57% of the company; Raytheon shareholders will own the rest. — CBS News, "Raytheon, United Technologies to merge, creating defense giant," 10 June 2019 Ghosn had been pushing for an outright merger, which Saikawa and others opposed. — Washington Post, "Why Ghosn’s Back in Jail and What It Says About Japan," 18 Sep. 2019 James’s brother, Lachlan, was chosen by their father to run the corporate bits that remained after the merger (chiefly, Fox News and Fox Sports). — Jane Mayer, The New Yorker, "No, James Murdoch Doesn’t Watch “Succession”," 17 Sep. 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'merger.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Last Updated

3 Nov 2019

Time Traveler for merger

The first known use of merger was in 1728

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More Definitions for merger

merger

noun

Financial Definition of merger

What It Is

A merger is a corporate strategy of combining different companies into a single company in order to enhance the financial and operational strengths of both organizations.

How It Works

A merger usually involves combining two companies into a single larger company. The combination of the two companies involves a transfer of ownership, either through a stock swap or a cash payment between the two companies. In practice, both companies surrender their stock and issue new stock as a new company.

There are several types of mergers. For example, horizontal mergers may happen between two companies in the same industry, such as banks or steel companies. Vertical mergers occur between two companies in the same industry value chain, such as a supplier or distributor or manufacturer. Mergers between two companies in related, but not the same industry are called concentric mergers. These mergers can use the same technologies or skilled workforce to work in both industry segments, such as banking and leasing. Finally, conglomerate mergers occur between two diversified companies that may share management to improve economies of scale for both companies.

A merger sometimes involves new branding or identity of the merged companies. Otherwise, a merger may lead to a combination of the names of the two companies, capitalizing on the brand identity of both companies.

Why It Matters

Mergers may result in a stronger company with combined assets, competencies, and markets. At the same time, mergers may result in a dilution of the financial strengths of one of the companies, particularly if the new company results in the issuance of more stock across the same asset base of the two merged companies. Finally, mergers often fail because of the clash of corporate cultures between the two companies, a reluctance to restructure redundant management and operations, incompatibilities of the technologies used by the companies, and disruptions in the workforce.

Because mergers are difficult to implement, most ultimately take the form of an acquisition, that is, the purchase of a weaker company by a stronger company.

Source: Investing Answers

merger

noun

English Language Learners Definition of merger

: the act or process of combining two or more businesses into one business

See the full definition for merger in the English Language Learners Dictionary

merger

noun

merg·er | \ ˈmər-jər

Kids Definition of merger

: the combination of two or more businesses into one

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merger

noun

merg·er | \ ˈmər-jər

Legal Definition of merger

1 : the absorption of a lesser estate or interest into a greater one held by the same person — compare confusion

2 : the incorporation and superseding of one contract by another

3a : the treatment (as by statute) of two offenses deriving from the same conduct such that a defendant cannot be or is not punished for both especially when one offense is incidental to or necessarily included in the other a merger of offenses in a statute a merger of convictions

b : the doctrine according to which such offenses must be merged — compare double jeopardy

Note: Merger commonly involves the interpretation of statutes and legislative intent in deciding whether two or more offenses deriving from the same conduct remain distinct.

4 : a doctrine in civil litigation: a judgment in favor of a plaintiff incorporates and supersedes the cause of action and any claims based on it and requires that further litigation in the case by the defendant be concerned with the judgment itself — compare bar sense 3b, estoppel by judgment at estoppel sense 2a, res judicata

5 : the superseding of a prior agreement in a divorce case by the divorce decree

6a : the act or process of merging

b : absorption by one corporation of another also : any of various methods of combining two or more organizations (as business concerns) — compare consolidate

— cash merger

: a merger in which shareholders in the company to be absorbed receive cash for their shares rather than shares in the absorbing company a tender offer to be followed by a cash merger — see also cash out

— de facto merger

: a merger that is characterized by the issuance of stock to the corporation to be absorbed rather than an outright purchase of assets for cash, by continued participation of the shareholders, directors, and employees of the absorbed corporation, and by an assumption of liabilities by the absorbing corporation

Note: Shareholders in a de facto merger are considered to have the same right to an appraisal of the fair value of their shares as shareholders in a statutory merger.

— short-form merger

: an accelerated statutory merger between a subsidiary and a parent corporation that controls a large specified majority of shares in the subsidiary

— statutory merger

: a merger performed in accordance with relevant statutes that require specific procedures for the notification and approval of shareholders

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