co-opt

verb

kō-ˈäpt 

co-opted; co-opting; co-opts

transitive verb

1

a

: to choose or elect as a member

members co-opted to the committee

b

: to appoint as a colleague or assistant

2

a

: to take into a group (such as a faction, movement, or culture) : absorb, assimilate

The students are co-opted by a system they serve even in their struggle against it.

—A. C. Danto

b

: take over, appropriate

a style co-opted by advertisers

co-optative

kō-ˈäp-tə-tiv 

adjective

co-option

kō-ˈäp-shən 

noun

co-optive

kō-ˈäp-tiv 

adjective

Synonyms

• absorb
• assimilate
• embody
• incorporate
• integrate

Examples of co-opt in a Sentence

the national organization co-opted many formerly independent local groups

Recent Examples on the Web

There's so much co-opting going on in these identical politics. —Lauren Goode, WIRED, 21 Nov. 2024

That cross has a long history in Christianity but has lately been co-opted by some far-right groups as a symbol of the fight for Western civilization. —Phil Stewart and Idrees Ali, USA TODAY, 16 Nov. 2024

Both presidential campaigns tried to co-opt the emotion known as joy, but neither was willing to maintain it when the darker arts of campaigning seemed to become more effective. —The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 5 Nov. 2024

The pages have co-opted the branding of hacktivist movement Anonymous, an ostensibly anti-establishment group of online activists and hackers that rose to prominence in the early 2000s. —Meriem Mahdhi, WIRED, 1 Nov. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Latin cooptare, from co- + optare to choose

First Known Use

1651, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

co-opt

verb

kō-ˈäpt

co-opted; co-opting

1

: to take into a group (as a faction, movement, or culture) : assimilate

2

: take over, appropriate sense 1

a style co-opted by advertisers