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An old saying, "The whole is greater than the sum of its parts", expresses the basic meaning of synergy. The word is sometimes used in a purely physical sense, especially when talking about drugs; sometimes a "cocktail" of drugs may be more effective than the sum of the effectiveness of each of the separate drugs. But the word is best known in the world of business. The notion that, when the right two companies merge, they'll produce a profitable synergy seemed exciting in the 1990s, when synergy became a trendy buzzword (even though it's actually been around since the 17th century). The idea of synergy was one factor in what became a "merger mania;" unfortunately, business synergy often turned out to be harder to achieve than to imagine.

Examples of synergy in a Sentence

A synergy has developed among the different groups working on this project. two companies that have found synergy

Recent Examples on the Web The cornerstone of having success against that kind of effort is synergy, and that’s primarily what the USWNT players and coaches will address during their session in Sandy. — Julie Jag, The Salt Lake Tribune, 21 Apr. 2022 Shoplazza not only offers the opportunity for partners to deeply collaborate with merchants on its platform, but also strives for synergy within the developer ecosystem to drive business success worldwide. — Shoplazza Contributor, Forbes, 20 Jan. 2022 With this next version of the desktop OS due this fall, Apple is aiming for device synergy. — Gear Team, Wired, 7 June 2021 Innovative ideas often come from a series of ideas built on one another, on the synergy that is created. — Suzanne Ricard-greenway, Forbes, 20 Oct. 2021 At least some of this can be attributed to the synergy Curry, Thompson and Green have long shared. — Connor Letourneau, San Francisco Chronicle, 19 Apr. 2022 My biggest blessing is finding synergy in my team, a team full of women, especially Rachelle heading that. — Heran Mamo, Billboard, 31 Mar. 2022 Paxlovid's unique effect comes from the synergy of its two antiviral components. — Sasha Pezenik, ABC News, 30 Mar. 2022 Even if not embracing Putin the man, others seem to share a certain synergy with his causes. — Washington Post, 23 Mar. 2022 See More

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