confederacy

[ kuhn-fed-er-uh-see, -fed-ruh-see ]
See synonyms for confederacy on Thesaurus.com
noun,plural con·fed·er·a·cies.
  1. an alliance between persons, parties, states, etc., for some purpose.

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

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

Origin of confederacy

1
1350–1400; Middle English confederacie<Anglo-French; see confederate, -acy

Words Nearby confederacy

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use confederacy in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for confederacy (1 of 2)

confederacy

/ (kənˈfɛdərəsɪ, -ˈfɛdrəsɪ) /


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

  2. a combination of groups or individuals for unlawful purposes

Origin of confederacy

1
C14: from Anglo-French confederacie, from Late Latin confoederātiō agreement, confederation

Derived forms of confederacy

  • confederal, adjective

British Dictionary definitions for Confederacy (2 of 2)

Confederacy

/ (kənˈfɛdərəsɪ, -ˈfɛdrəsɪ) /


noun
  1. the Confederacy another name for Confederate States of America

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Cultural definitions for Confederacy

Confederacy

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.)

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.