merger

American  

[mur-jer] / ˈmɜr dʒər /

noun

1. a statutory combination of two or more corporations by the transfer of the properties to one surviving corporation.

2. any combination of two or more business enterprises into a single enterprise.

3. an act or instance of merging.

   Astronomers say that the merger of galaxies can take a billion years.

4. Phonetics. the process or phenomenon whereby two distinct speech sounds come to be pronounced identically: for instance, the cot–caught vowel merger has taken place in some dialects of English.

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merger British  

/ ˈmɜːdʒə /

noun

1. Often called (Brit): amalgamation.  commerce the combination of two or more companies, either by the creation of a new organization or by absorption by one of the others

2. law the extinguishment of an estate, interest, contract, right, offence, etc, by its absorption into a greater one

3. the act of merging or the state of being merged

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merger Cultural  

1. The union of two or more independent corporations under a single ownership. Also known as takeovers, mergers may be friendly or hostile. In the latter case, the buying company, having met with resistance from directors of the targeted company, usually offers an inflated (overmarket) price to persuade stockholders of the targeted company to sell their shares to it. Such mergers often have been financed by junk bonds.

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Discover More

Especially common in the 1980s, hostile takeovers have become highly controversial. Some contend that they bring needed infusions of capital and efficiency to the targeted company. Others argue that, having borrowed heavily to finance the merger, the buyer is forced to sell valuable assets of the targeted company to pay off its debt.

Other Word Forms

• antimerger
  adjective
• demerger
  noun
• premerger
  adjective
• promerger
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of merger

First recorded in 1720–30; merge + -er ¹

Explanation

When two companies become one company, they've had a merger. A merger is like a marriage for things other than people. It might help you remember merger to think of something that happens on the highway: several lanes sometimes have to merge into one lane. Merging leads to more than one thing becoming one. Words that mean something similar to merger are unification and fusion. Separation and break-up are opposites of a merger.

Example Sentences

Appeared in the December 15, 2025, print edition as 'A Merger Could Bring Better Streaming'.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 14, 2025

Merger and acquisition activity is on the rise across European banks and banking unions, and regulation could be eased on several fronts to spur growth.

From Barron's • Nov. 20, 2025

Merger signatures are equally common in galaxies with and without accreting supermassive black holes.

From Science Daily • Mar. 5, 2024

Merger talks between the chip heavyweights have been off and on since 2021.

From Reuters • Oct. 27, 2023

Merger under the threat of external force is well illustrated by the formation of the Cherokee Indian confederation in the U.S.

From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond

Related Words

• combination
• tie up
• unification
• union