cartel

American  

[kahr-tel] / kɑrˈtɛl /

noun

1. an international syndicate, combine, or trust formed especially to regulate prices and output in some field of business.

   Synonyms:

   combination, merger, monopoly

2. a coalition of political or special-interest groups having a common cause, as to encourage the passage of a certain law.

3. a written agreement between belligerents, especially for the exchange of prisoners.

4. a written challenge to a duel.

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cartel British  

/ kɑːˈtɛl /

noun

1. Also called: trust.  a collusive international association of independent enterprises formed to monopolize production and distribution of a product or service, control prices, etc

2. politics an alliance of parties or interests to further common aims

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cartel Cultural  

1. An association in which producers of a similar or identical product try to obtain a monopoly over the sale of the product.

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Discover More

The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) is a cartel.

Other Word Forms

• cartelism noun

Etymology

Origin of cartel

1550–60; < Middle French < Italian cartello letter of defiance, poster, equivalent to cart ( a ) carte + -ello diminutive suffix

Explanation

When groups band together to control the supply of a product for their best interests, that’s called a cartel. If you and the other kids running lemonade stands form a cartel, you can force up the price of lemonade. The word cartel originally referred to political parties that joined forces to promote a common cause. Over the years, cartel took on a decidedly negative connotation, and now it’s more likely to describe organizations that join together to limit supply of a product to force prices to remain high. You might read about an international drug cartel or a cartel of natural gas producers. To correctly pronounce the word cartel, put the accent on the second syllable: “car TEL.”

Example Sentences

Her administration expelled 29 jailed cartel bosses to the U.S., a move that some legal experts said violated Mexican law.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 28, 2026

As World Cup co-hosts, Mexico plans to deploy nearly 100,000 security personnel to protect fans at this summer's tournament, amid ongoing drug cartel violence in the country.

From BBC • Apr. 20, 2026

The OPEC+ oil cartel agreed on Sunday to again increase oil production quotas, while warning that repairing energy facilities, such as those damaged in the Middle East war, is "costly and takes a long time".

From Barron's • Apr. 5, 2026

Mexico has extradited 92 alleged high-ranking cartel members to the U.S. during President Trump’s second term.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 5, 2026

Right before their eyes he had transformed his syndicate into an international cartel.

From "Catch-22" by Joseph Heller

Related Words

• conglomerate
• consortium
• corporation
• gang
• holding company
• mob
• monopoly
• ring
• syndicate