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• member
  member

  noun

  a person, animal, plant, group, etc., that is part of a society, party, community, taxon, or other body.
• Member
  Member

  noun

  short for Member of Parliament

member

American  

[mem-ber] / ˈmɛm bər /

noun

• members
  plural

1. a person, animal, plant, group, etc., that is part of a society, party, community, taxon, or other body.

2. Government.

   1. a member of Congress, especially of the House of Representatives.

   2. a member of the British Parliament, especially of the House of Commons.

   3. any member of a legislative body.

3. a part or organ of an animal body; a limb, as a leg, arm, or wing.

4. Botany. a structural entity of a plant body.

5. the penis.

6. a constituent part of any structural or composite whole, as a subordinate architectural feature of a building.

   Synonyms:

   portion, element

7. Mathematics.

   1. either side of an equation.

   2. an element of a set.

8. Geology. a stratigraphic unit recognized within a formation, and mapped as such.

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adjective

1. being a member of or having membership in an association, organization, etc..

   member countries of the United Nations.

Member ¹ British  

/ ˈmɛmbə /

noun

1. short for Member of Parliament

2. short for Member of Congress

3. a member of some other legislative body

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member ² British  

/ ˈmɛmbə /

noun

1. a person who belongs to a club, political party, etc

2. any individual plant or animal in a taxonomic group

   a member of the species

3. any part of an animal body, such as a limb

4. another word for penis

5. any part of a plant, such as a petal, root, etc

6. maths any individual object belonging to a set or logical class

7. a distinct part of a whole, such as a proposition in a syllogism

8. a component part of a building or construction

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member Scientific  

/ mĕm′bər /

1. A quantity that belongs to a set.

2. The expression on either side of an equal sign.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• submember
  noun
• memberless
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• members
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of member

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English membre, from Old French, from Latin membrum

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Explanation

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."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

member Member members

She said it was also good that her fellow cast member Ella Lily Hyland was able to use her Irish accent in the drama.

From BBC ● Oct. 31, 2026

Okta can expect a new pool of buyers for its stock as a member of the S&P 500.

From Barron's ● Oct. 31, 2026

A. aegis had been fixed in ethanol rather than formalin, the only member of the genus stored that way, and ethanol leaves genetic material intact.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 30, 2026

Veres is a member of the Los Angeles Community College District Board of Trustees and works as a state political adviser.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 30, 2026

But Dasch knew that any little slipup, such as revealing that he had been a member of a labor union, would mean "curtains."

From Nazi Saboteurs by Samantha Seiple

City Council Member Gale Brewer, who is behind a large part of the proposed measures, said the city received 172 complaints in 2025 related to pedicabs.

From Barron's ● Oct. 7, 2026

Member nations of the International Energy Agency, a club of Western states and their allies, agreed to release 400 million barrels onto the market in March, the biggest coordinated reserve release in the IEA’s history.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026

Last week, ahead of Tuesday's vote, 133 women from the village wrote to every female Member of Parliament saying "life as we know it will be destroyed" if the plans succeed.

From BBC ● Sep. 15, 2026

“This legislation will not retire with me. Plans are already under way to ensure another Member carries this effort forward,” she said in a statement.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 25, 2026

Since these speeches were in part rehearsal for when, as the local Member of the Legislative Assembly, Comrade Pillai would address thronging millions, there was something odd about their pitch and cadence.

From "The God of Small Things" by Arundhati Roy

For example, Ray said, before contributing to a grandchild’s 529, check to see whether other family members or relatives are taking care of that.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 31, 2026

The development is installing a wave machine designed by Kelly Slater Wave, and actor Matthew McConaughey, skateboarder Tony Hawk and ex-NFL quarterback Drew Brees are all members there.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 31, 2026

Instead, they may have deliberately chosen a particular location and returned to it repeatedly to lay deceased members of their community to rest.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 31, 2026

The Council voted 12-0 to put the measure on the ballot, with three council members absent.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 31, 2026

“I actually know which members I want to speak to—if that’s cool with you,” I say.

From "Split the Sky" by Marie Arnold

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Related Words

• male sex organ
• penis
• phallus

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