4 results for: Colonies

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This

col·o·ny

Audio Help [kol-uh-nee] Pronunciation Key

–noun, plural -nies.

1.	a group of people who leave their native country to form in a new land a settlement subject to, or connected with, the parent nation.

2.	the country or district settled or colonized: Many Western nations are former European colonies.

3.	any people or territory separated from but subject to a ruling power.

4.	the Colonies, those British colonies that formed the original 13 states of the United States: New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia.

5.	a number of people coming from the same country, or speaking the same language, residing in a foreign country or city, or a particular section of it; enclave: the Polish colony in Israel; the American colony in Paris.

6.	any group of individuals having similar interests, occupations, etc., usually living in a particular locality; community: a colony of artists.

7.	the district, quarter, or dwellings inhabited by any such number or group: The Greek island is now an artists' colony.

8.	an aggregation of bacteria growing together as the descendants of a single cell.

9.	Ecology. a group of organisms of the same kind living or growing in close association.

[Origin: 1350–1400; ME colonie (< MF) < L colōnia, equiv. to colōn(us) colonus + -ia -y³

]

—Synonyms 6. body, band.

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
Colonies

To learn more about Colonies visit Britannica.com

American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

col·o·ny Audio Help (kŏl'ə-nē) Pronunciation Key
n. pl. col·o·nies

1. A group of emigrants or their descendants who settle in a distant territory but remain subject to or closely associated with the parent country.
2. A territory thus settled.
3. A group of people with the same interests or ethnic origin concentrated in a particular area: the American colony in Paris.
4. The area occupied by such a group.
A region politically controlled by a distant country; a dependency.
1. A group of people with the same interests or ethnic origin concentrated in a particular area: the American colony in Paris.
2. The area occupied by such a group.
Colonies The British colonies that became the original 13 states of the United States.
A group of people who have been institutionalized in a relatively remote area: an island penal colony.
Ecology A group of the same kind of animals, plants, or one-celled organisms living or growing together.
Microbiology A visible growth of microorganisms, usually in a solid or semisolid nutrient medium.

[Middle English colonie, from Latin colōnia, from colōnus, settler, from colere, to cultivate; see k^wel-¹ in Indo-European roots.]

(Download Now or Buy the Book)

The American Heritage Science Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

colony Audio Help (kŏl'ə-nē) Pronunciation Key
A group of the same kind of animals, plants, or one-celled organisms living or growing together. Organisms live in colonies for their mutual benefit, and especially their protection. Multicellular organisms may have evolved out of colonies of unicellular organisms.

View results from: Dictionary | Thesaurus | Encyclopedia | All Reference | the Web