society

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English[edit]

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Etymology[edit]

From Old French societé, from Latin societas.

Pronunciation[edit]

Noun[edit]

society (countable and uncountable; plural societies)

  1. (countable) A long-standing group of people sharing cultural aspects such as language, dress, norms of behavior and artistic forms.
    • 2012 March-April, John T. Jost, “Social Justice: Is It in Our Nature (and Our Future)?”, American Scientist, volume 100, number 2, page 162: 
      He draws eclectically on studies of baboons, descriptive anthropological accounts of hunter-gatherer societies and, in a few cases, the fossil record.
    This society has been known for centuries for its colorful clothing and tight-knit family structure.
  2. (countable) A group of people who meet from time to time to engage in a common interest; an association or organization.
    It was then that they decided to found a society of didgeridoo-playing unicyclists.
  3. (countable) The sum total of all voluntary interrelations between individuals.
  4. (uncountable) The people of one’s country or community taken as a whole.
    • 2006, Edwin Black, chapter 1, Internal Combustion[1]:
      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: […] .
    • 2012 January 1, Steven Sloman, “The Battle Between Intuition and Deliberation”, American Scientist, volume 100, number 1, page 74: 
      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.
  5. (uncountable) High society.
    Smith was first introduced into society at the Duchess of Grand Fenwick's annual rose garden party.
    • 1813, Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice:
      "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."
  6. (countable, law) A number of people joined by mutual consent to deliberate, determine and act toward a common goal.

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