collection

American  

[kuh-lek-shuhn] / kəˈlɛk ʃən /

noun

1. the act of collecting.

2. something that is collected; a group of objects or an amount of material accumulated in one location, especially for some purpose or as a result of some process: a collection of unclaimed hats in the checkroom;

   a stamp collection;

   a collection of unclaimed hats in the checkroom;

   a collection of books on Churchill.

   Synonyms:

   store, hoard, pile, heap, mass, aggregation, accumulation

3. the works of art constituting the holdings of an art museum.

   a history of the museum and of the collection.

4. the gathered or exhibited works of a single painter, sculptor, etc..

   an excellent Picasso collection.

5. collections, the various holdings of an art museum organized by category, as painting, sculpture, works on paper, photography, or film.

   the director of the collections.

6. the clothes or other items produced by a designer, especially for a seasonal line.

   the spring collection.

7. a sum of money collected, especially for charity or church use.

   Synonyms:

   alms, contribution(s)

8. Manège. act of bringing or coming into a collected attitude.

---

collection British  

/ kəˈlɛkʃən /

noun

1. the act or process of collecting

2. a number of things collected or assembled together

3. a selection of clothes, esp as presented by a particular designer for a specified season

4. something gathered into a mass or pile; accumulation

   a collection of rubbish

5. a sum of money collected or solicited, as in church

6. removal, esp regular removal of letters from a postbox

7. (often plural) (at Oxford University) a college examination or an oral report by a tutor

---

Other Word Forms

• collectional
  adjective
• noncollection
  noun
• precollection
  noun
• subcollection
  noun

Etymology

Origin of collection

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English colleccioun, from Anglo-French, from Latin collēctiōn-, stem of collēctiō “a gathering together,” from collēct(us) “gathered together” (past participle of colligere; see collect ¹) + -iō -ion

Explanation

A collection is a group of things, often a group created by someone. For example, many kids have a collection of comic books. Notice the word collect in collection. If you like to collect — that is, gather — things, chances are you might have a collection of some sort. Some common types of collections are of books, stamps, and dolls. You can also refer to a museum's "collection of art." While you might call a group of people a gathering, you would call a group of rare coins a collection.

Example Sentences

Voters settled control of roughly 40% of the local governments across England that handle trash collection, pothole filling, low-income housing and various other day-to-day administrative functions.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 8, 2026

Renee Weitzer, who spent over three decades working at Los Angeles City Hall, grasps onto the leg of a Mattel-designed Ken doll from LACMA’s collection.

From Los Angeles Times • May 8, 2026

With over 30 satellites in orbit, the company estimates its addressable market is about $24 billion, including sensors, payloads, and algorithms that support data collection and analysis.

From Barron's • May 7, 2026

The clinic says its staff were not responsible and that they "think the issue happened during the sperm collection" which took place in another country.

From BBC • May 7, 2026

Dad’s gonna flip when he finds out Junior got his kick collection.

From "The Manifestor Prophecy" by Angie Thomas

Related Words

• assemblage
• assortment
• compilation
• lot
• number
• selection
• set
• store