Did you know?

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 In design, synergy comes down to the acute placement of a few key individual pieces. — Rachel Silva, ELLE Decor, 28 July 2022 Another approach is to dig into the information and assumptions on synergy value creators, cost reductions, and cultural compatibility. — George Bradt, Forbes, 12 July 2022 And in a case of Comcast/NBCUniversal synergy, USG and UCP have turned to their sister NBC broadcast station unit for help. — Michael Schneider, Variety, 21 June 2022 Building a custom solution could be the better choice if an out-of-the-box technology tool is hindering synergy across the business or requiring cumbersome manual effort to integrate. — Tim Mitrovich, Forbes, 29 June 2022 There’s a similar synergy to Rose’s prints, which use forms cut in wood to embody and emulate metal girders, plates and mechanisms. — Mark Jenkins, Washington Post, 17 June 2022 But as the two starting talking, the former Louisville assistant coach felt synergy between them. — Alex Vejar, The Salt Lake Tribune, 27 May 2022 For a certain generation of millenials, the iPod represents that perfect synergy of youth and technology. — Jacob Carpenter, Fortune, 11 May 2022 In short, a synergy between SEO and e-commerce is vital for anyone entering Latin American markets—and there has never been a better time for doing so. — Patrick O'neill, Forbes, 18 Apr. 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.