Word definition: society

Etimology


1530s; borrowed from Middle French societé, from Old French societé, from Latin societās, societātem (“fellowship, association, alliance, union, community”), from socius (“associated, allied; partner, companion, ally”), from Proto-Indo-European *sokʷ-yo- (“companion”), from Proto-Indo-European *sekʷ- (“to follow”).

noun


society (countable and uncountable, plural societies)

(countable) A long-standing group of people sharing cultural aspects such as language, dress, norms of behavior and artistic forms.

(countable) A group of people who meet from time to time to engage in a common interest; an association or organization.

(countable) The sum total of all voluntary interrelations between individuals.

(uncountable) The people of one’s country or community taken as a whole.

(uncountable) High society.

(countable, law) A number of people joined by mutual consent to deliberate, determine and act toward a common goal.

Examples


This society has been known for centuries for its colorful clothing and tight-knit family structure.

He draws eclectically on studies of baboons, descriptive anthropological accounts of hunter-gatherer societies and, in a few cases, the fossil record.

It was then that they decided to found a society of didgeridoo-playing unicyclists.

At half-past nine on this Saturday evening, the parlour of the Salutation Inn, High Holborn, contained most of its customary visitors. […] In former days every tavern of repute kept such a room for its own select circle, a club, or society, of habitués, who met every evening, for a pipe and a cheerful glass.

The gap between Western and Eastern societies seems to be narrowing.

Policing the relationship between government and business in a free society is difficult. Businesspeople have every right to lobby governments, and civil servants to take jobs in the private sector.

Our global society develops in fits and starts.

If successful, Edison and Ford—in 1914—would move society away from the ever more expensive and then universally known killing hazards of gasoline cars: […].

Libertarian paternalism is the view that, because the way options are presented to citizens affects what they choose, society should present options in a way that “nudges” our intuitive selves to make choices that are more consistent with what our more deliberative selves would have chosen if they were in control.

Smith was first introduced into society at the Duchess of Grand Fenwick's annual rose garden party.

"What a charming amusement for young people this is, Mr. Darcy! There is nothing like dancing after all. I consider it as one of the first refinements of polished society."

Related words


hyponyms

* bible societybuilding societycafé societycivic societycivil societyhigh societylearned societymutual admiration societypolite societyRoyal Societysecret society

building society

café society

civic society

civil society

high society

learned society

mutual admiration society

polite society

Royal Society

secret society

Data provided by Wiktionary