consortium

noun

con·​sor·​tium kən-ˈsȯr-sh(ē-)əm 

-ˈsȯr-tē-əm

plural consortia kən-ˈsȯr-sh(ē-)ə 

-ˈsȯr-tē-ə

also consortiums

1

: an agreement, combination, or group (as of companies) formed to undertake an enterprise beyond the resources of any one member

A consortium of researchers decoded the honeybee genome.

2

: association, society

3

: the legal right of one spouse to the company, affection, and assistance of and to sexual relations with the other

Synonyms

• association
• board
• brotherhood
• chamber
• club
• college
• congress
• council
• fellowship
• fraternity
• guild
• gild
• institute
• institution
• league
• order
• organization
• society
• sodality

Examples of consortium in a Sentence

A Japanese consortium invested millions in the technology.

a consortium for the prevention of animal cruelty

Recent Examples on the Web

Cai is the coordinator of the Synthetic Yeast Genome Project, a global consortium aimed at redesigning the genome for brewer’s yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae). —Quanta Magazine, 4 Nov. 2024

The new 150-room hotel will be built in partnership with a consortium of Chilean investors with completion scheduled for the end of 2025. —Michael Goldstein, Forbes, 21 Oct. 2024

Energy Northwest, a consortium of state public utilities, will have the option to add up to eight 80 MW modules, resulting in a total capacity up to 960 MWs, or enough to power the equivalent of more than 770,000 U.S. homes. —Timothy Gardner, USA TODAY, 17 Oct. 2024

Amazon also announced a new agreement with utility company Energy Northwest, a consortium of state public utilities, to fund the development, licensing and construction of four SMRs in Washington state. —Diana Olick, CNBC, 16 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Latin, fellowship, from consort-, consors — see consort entry 1

First Known Use

1829, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Legal Definition

consortium

noun

con·​sor·​tium kən-ˈsȯr-shəm; -shē-əm 

plural consortia -shə, -shē-ə  also consortiums

1

: an agreement, combination, or group (as of companies) formed to undertake an enterprise beyond the resources of any one member

2

[Medieval Latin, marital partnership, from Latin] : the right of one spouse to the company, affection, and assistance of and to sexual relations with the other

also : the right of a parent or child to the company, affection, and assistance of the other

suing for loss of consortium

compare society

Etymology

Latin, sharing, partnership, from consort-, consors sharer, partner