Jump To:

• confederacy
  confederacy

  noun

  an alliance between persons, parties, states, etc., for some purpose.
• Confederacy
  Confederacy

  noun

  another name for Confederate States of America

confederacy

American  

[kuhn-fed-er-uh-see, -fed-ruh-see] / kənˈfɛd ər ə si, -ˈfɛd rə si /

noun

• confederacies
  plural

1. an alliance between persons, parties, states, etc., for some purpose.

2. a group of persons, parties, states, etc., united by such a confederacy.

3. a combination of persons for unlawful purposes; conspiracy.

4. the Confederacy. Confederate States of America.

---

confederacy ¹ British  

/ kənˈfɛdərəsɪ, -ˈfɛdrəsɪ /

noun

1. a union or combination of peoples, states, etc; alliance; league

2. a combination of groups or individuals for unlawful purposes

---

Confederacy ² British  

/ kənˈfɛdərəsɪ, -ˈfɛdrəsɪ /

noun

1. another name for Confederate States of America

---

Confederacy Cultural  

1. The Confederate States of America; the government formed in 1861 by southern states that proclaimed their secession from the United States. Jefferson Davis was its president. The Confederacy was dissolved after the Civil War. (Compare Union.)

---

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• confederal
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• confederacies
  plural

Etymology

Origin of confederacy

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English confederacie, from Anglo-French, equivalent to Late Latin confoederāt(us) “united” (past participle of confoederāre “to unite in a league”; see confederate) + -ia -y ³ ( def. )

Explanation

A confederacy is a political union. The most famous American confederacy consisted of the southern states who fought the northern states in the American Civil War. When you confederate — that is, join together for a common purpose — what you get is a confederacy. Americans will never forget a well-known but ill-fated confederacy, the Confederate States of America: an unrecognized state that formed in 1861, uniting the slave states that left the United States at the time of the Civil War. Any such political union could be called a confederacy (or a federation). When you see the word confederacy, think of togetherness in the political realm.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

confederacy Confederacy confederacies

Athens emerged as the head of the Delian League, a confederacy of cities located along the Anatolian coast and on islands in the Aegean.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 10, 2026

In the confederacy, Georgia enacted a similar 15-day grace period, while Florida law provided an extra 20 days.

From Slate ● Mar. 13, 2026

Known as “Lament for Confederation,” it was a landmark moment in First Nations history, calling out the meaning of the confederacy and the impact of colonization on Indigenous peoples.

From Seattle Times ● Mar. 5, 2024

But without some agreed-upon mechanism for determining whether such a violation has happened, there is effectively no difference between Radan’s version and the "mere confederacy during pleasure" Story describes.

From Salon ● Dec. 16, 2023

In this confederacy, the clan mothers also played a key role in governance.

From "An Indigenous People’s History of the United States" by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz

The Seneca Nation also pointed to the 1794 Treaty of Canandaigua, signed during George Washington’s presidency between the United States and the Six Nations of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy.

From Salon ● Aug. 29, 2026

The Civil War then gave new meaning to Key’s verses as the Union’s anthem while the Confederacy embraced “Dixie.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 23, 2026

As the U.S. plunged into Civil War in 1861, both the Union and Confederacy sought to link their side to God.

From Salon ● Jun. 29, 2026

It commemorates the day—June 19, 1865—when news of emancipation reached people in the deepest parts of the former Confederacy in Galveston, Texas.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 18, 2026

The Stars and Bars that people regard today as the national symbol of the Confederacy is actually a battle c , „ , flag that was used by Confederate armies, not an off!-

From "Lincoln's Last Days: The Shocking Assassination that Changed America Forever" by Bill O'Reilly

In the founding fathers' day, the possible confederacies most spoken of were the four Eastern states, the four "middle" states and the five Southern states.

From Salon ● May 10, 2020

They also coalesced in larger confederacies when necessary; Europeans would know them as Creeks or Choctaws.

From Textbooks ● Jan. 18, 2018

Madison carefully prepared for the convention with thorough research in classical political theory, the history of ancient republics and confederacies, and the current politics of the states.

From Textbooks ● Jan. 18, 2018

Without Napoleon Europe could have remained some rough confederacies of fiefdoms, each forever squabbling, no unified Germany or Italy, Russia too big to succeed fractures into more manageable regions, etc.

From New York Times ● Nov. 6, 2017

The natural result was the formation of numerous leagues and confederacies for the suppression of anarchy and the protection of trade and industry.

From A Source Book of Medi?val History Documents Illustrative of European Life and Institutions from the German Invasions to the Renaissance by Frederic Austin Ogg