a person, animal, plant, group, etc., that is part of a society, party, community, taxon, or other body.
Government.
a member of Congress, especially of the House of Representatives.
a member of the British Parliament, especially of the House of Commons.
any member of a legislative body.
a part or organ of an animal body; a limb, as a leg, arm, or wing.
Botany. a structural entity of a plant body.
the penis.
a constituent part of any structural or composite whole, as a subordinate architectural feature of a building.
Mathematics.
either side of an equation.
an element of a set.
Geology. a stratigraphic unit recognized within a formation, and mapped as such.
short for Member of Parliament
short for Member of Congress
a member of some other legislative body
a person who belongs to a club, political party, etc
any individual plant or animal in a taxonomic group
a member of the species
any part of an animal body, such as a limb
another word for penis
any part of a plant, such as a petal, root, etc
maths any individual object belonging to a set or logical class
a distinct part of a whole, such as a proposition in a syllogism
a component part of a building or construction
A quantity that belongs to a set.
The expression on either side of an equal sign.
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English membre, from Old French, from Latin membrum
If you're a member, you belong to a group or club. The late comedian Groucho Marx famously said, "I refuse to join any club that would have me as a member." Go figure. When an object, like a plant or an element, is a member, it's also part of a group or class. A tiger, for example, is a member of the genus called Panthera, and it's also a member of the cat family. You're a member of the human species, and if you swim competitively, you're also a member of a swim team. The United States is a member, along with 192 other countries, of the United Nations. The Latin root of member is membrum, "part," and also "limb or part of the body."
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"However, it is observed that a few Member States continue to maintain restrictions, discriminatory measures, and the exclusion of the Myanmar Government from equal representation."
From Barron's • May 11, 2026
Member Amy Haynes, 39, from North Somerset, said it had been "positive" having a group to connect with where she can say "actually, I'm not OK".
From BBC • Apr. 12, 2026
We hope you learned a thing or two from this edition of Executive Dysfunction, and if you enjoyed reading it, please consider supporting our legal journalism by becoming a Slate Plus Member!
From Slate • Feb. 26, 2026
“The entire Texas delegation, as well as every single other Member of Congress, should be condemning a sitting Member of Congress asking for explicit photos of their staff,” Luna said in a social media post.
From Salon • Feb. 25, 2026
“The masters made sure of that. Anything too extreme would get us expelled for Conduct Unbecoming a Member of the Arcanum. Why do you think I haven’t made his life a hell?”
From "The Name of the Wind" by Patrick Rothfuss
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
