collective
Americanadjective
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formed by collection.
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forming a whole; combined.
the collective assets of a corporation and its subsidiaries.
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of or characteristic of a group of individuals taken together.
the collective wishes of the membership.
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organized according to the principles of collectivism.
a collective farm.
noun
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a collective body; group.
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a business, farm, etc., jointly owned and operated by the members of a group.
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a unit of organization or the organization in a collectivist system.
adjective
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formed or assembled by collection
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forming a whole or aggregate
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of, done by, or characteristic of individuals acting in cooperation
noun
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a cooperative enterprise or unit, such as a collective farm
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the members of such a cooperative
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short for collective noun
Other Word Forms
- collectively adverb
- collectiveness noun
- noncollective adjective
- uncollective adjective
Etymology
Origin of collective
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English collectif (from Middle French ), from Latin collēctīvus, equivalent to collēct(us) (past participle of colligere; collect 1 ) + -īvus -ive
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Davis was found to have maintained financial ties to the collective impact after her departure to the commission.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 2, 2026
How his season is viewed will ultimately be determined by the level of collective success Arsenal have by the end of the season.
From BBC • Apr. 2, 2026
Starbucks said the program announced Thursday “will be subject to collective bargaining as required by federal law” at the roughly 5% of U.S. stores that have unionized.
From MarketWatch • Apr. 2, 2026
She has received numerous grants for her artwork, community organizing, and for the Black Quantum Futurism collective she co-founded with Rasheedah Phillips.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 31, 2026
The silence—driven by stigma and fear of shame—results in a repression of public thought, a collective denial of lived experience.
From "The New Jim Crow" by Michelle Alexander
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
