gesellschaft

American  

[guh-zel-shahft] / gəˈzɛlˌʃɑft /

noun

(often initial capital letter)

plural

gesellschaften

1. an association of individuals for common goals, as for entertainment, intellectual, or cultural purposes or for business reasons.

2. Sociology. a society or group characterized chiefly by formal organization, impersonal relations, the absence of generally held or binding norms, and a detachment from traditional and sentimental concerns, and often tending to be rationalistic and secular in outlook.

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gesellschaft British  

/ ɡəˈzɛlʃaft /

noun

1. (often capital) a social group held together by practical concerns, formal and impersonal relationships, etc Compare gemeinschaft

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Etymology

Origin of gesellschaft

1935–40; < German, equivalent to Geselle companion + -schaft -ship

Compare meaning

How does gesellschaft compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• gemeinschaft vs. gesellschaft

Example Sentences

You doubtless think me an ungrateful fellow for not mentioning the delicious assortment of goodies which came, like melons to Artemis, to this benighted gesellschaft on Thursday last.

From Of All Things by Benchley, Robert C.

The graf de Ferraris too has sold the estate to a gesellschaft from Vienna.

From Lippincott's Magazine of Popular Literature and Science Volume 12, No. 29, August, 1873 by Various