association
an organization of people with a common purpose and having a formal structure.
the act of associating or state of being associated.
friendship; companionship: Their close association did not last long.
connection or combination.
the connection or relation of ideas, feelings, sensations, etc.; correlation of elements of perception, reasoning, or the like.
an idea, image, feeling, etc., suggested by or connected with something other than itself; an accompanying thought, emotion, or the like; an overtone or connotation: My associations with that painting are of springlike days.
Ecology. a group of plants of one or more species living together under uniform environmental conditions and having a uniform and distinctive aspect.
Chemistry. a weak form of chemical bonding involving aggregation of molecules of the same compound.
Astronomy. stellar association.
Origin of association
1Other words for association
Other words from association
- as·so·ci·a·tion·al, adjective
- in·ter·as·so·ci·a·tion, noun
- non·as·so·ci·a·tion, noun
- non·as·so·ci·a·tion·al, adjective
- pro·as·so·ci·a·tion, adjective
- pseu·do·as·so·ci·a·tion·al, adjective
- re·as·so·ci·a·tion, noun
- sub·as·so·ci·a·tion, noun
- sub·as·so·ci·a·tion·al, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use association in a sentence
Some longtime local acquaintances are struggling to square the man they know with the ugly associations.
No. 3 Republican Admits Talking to White Supremacist Conference | Tim Mak | December 30, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTFor instance, he could “be slightly more understanding with regard to Jewish heritage and associations” for artists.
Top Nazis And Their Complicated Relationship With Artists | William O’Connor | November 30, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTThat decision would shake up hundreds of state boards and associations.
The Supreme Court Is Weighing Corporate Power Yet Again | Zephyr Teachout | October 17, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTWomen would refuse to go near any man with thuggish associations, for real—barely a thug could expect to get any action.
It was a way to be free of historical associations and at the same time claim a new identity.
The associations of place recall her strange interview with Mr. Longcluse but a few months before.
Checkmate | Joseph Sheridan Le FanuEvery turn in the road, every clearing of the forest, he knew, and each in turn brought forgotten associations to life.
Three More John Silence Stories | Algernon BlackwoodBenefit societies may be purely voluntary associations or incorporated either by statute or charter.
Putnam's Handy Law Book for the Layman | Albert Sidney BollesSometimes a quarrel springs up in one of these associations, the members divide, who shall have the property?
Putnam's Handy Law Book for the Layman | Albert Sidney BollesThe place is utterly unsoftened by human influences, by any humanising associations of history, good or bad.
Three More John Silence Stories | Algernon Blackwood
British Dictionary definitions for association
/ (əˌsəʊsɪˈeɪʃən, -ʃɪ-) /
a group of people having a common purpose or interest; a society or club
the act of associating or the state of being associated
friendship or companionship: their association will not last
a mental connection of ideas, feelings, or sensations: association of revolution with bloodshed
psychol the mental process of linking ideas so that the recurrence of one idea automatically recalls the other: See also free association
chem the formation of groups of molecules and ions, esp in liquids, held together by weak chemical bonds
ecology a group of similar plants that grow in a uniform environment and contain one or more dominant species
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Scientific definitions for association
[ ə-sō′sē-ā′shən, -shē- ]
A large number of organisms in a specific geographic area constituting a community with one or two dominant species.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Browse