cooperation

American  

[koh-op-uh-rey-shuhn] / koʊˌɒp əˈreɪ ʃən /

Or co-operation

noun

• cooperations
  plural

1. an act or instance of working or acting together for a common purpose or benefit; joint action.

2. more or less active assistance from a person, organization, etc..

   We sought the cooperation of various civic leaders.

3. willingness to cooperate.

   to indicate cooperation.

4. Economics. the combination of persons for purposes of production, purchase, or distribution for their joint benefit.

   producers' cooperation; consumers' cooperation.

5. Sociology. activity shared for mutual benefit.

6. Ecology. mutually beneficial interaction among organisms living in a limited area.

---

cooperation British  

/ kəʊˌɒpəˈreɪʃən /

noun

1. joint operation or action

2. assistance or willingness to assist

3. economics the combination of consumers, workers, farmers, etc, in activities usually embracing production, distribution, or trade

4. ecology beneficial but inessential interaction between two species in a community

---

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• co-operationist
  noun
• cooperationist
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• cooperations
  plural

Etymology

Origin of cooperation

First recorded in 1620–30; from Middle French, from Late Latin cooperātiōn-, stem of cooperātiō; equivalent to cooperate + -ion

Explanation

Working together is cooperation. Thanks to the cooperation of the parents, teachers, and students, the end of year school dance rocked the house without rocking the boat. If you break apart cooperation you see co which means together and operation which is a project or job. When you practice cooperation you are working together on a job or project. Cooperation can sometimes be hard to come by, which is why when someone does a lot of it, it's nice to say thank you.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

cooperation cooperations

Locating the crater involved cooperation among professional researchers and amateur observers around the world.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 20, 2026

"But I'm sure we're going to hit the right number to have a bit of both a lot of competition with the right level of cooperation in the team and everybody feeling important."

From BBC ● Aug. 20, 2026

Prisoner exchanges and repatriations of soldiers' remains have been among the few areas of cooperation between Russia and Ukraine since Moscow launched its offensive in February 2022.

From Barron's ● Aug. 19, 2026

Philippine officials reject the idea that Manila’s cooperation with Washington increases the risk of a conflict.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 2026

‘That’s right. For hundreds of years, the gods tried to separate us to keep us from fighting. But there’s a better kind of peace - cooperation.’

From "Blood of Olympus" by Rick Riordan

The front-of-house’s seamless teamwork comprised myriad tiny cooperations that patrons don’t, and shouldn’t, notice.

From Seattle Times ● Jun. 4, 2023

“The group has many cooperations across the world with many companies,” said Ioannis Arapoglou, the Copelouzos Group’s general manager.

From New York Times ● Aug. 18, 2022

Possible cooperations for Coast Guards on both sides were also discussed, he said.

From Reuters ● Aug. 27, 2021

The book mentions many previously disclosed covert and clandestine cooperations between the CIA and Chinese intelligence, along with many surprising new details.

From Washington Times ● Apr. 22, 2015

Orders from Greene to Lee found him preparing for further cooperations with Marion, which they arrested.

From The Life of Francis Marion by William Gilmore Simms

Related Words

• aid
• assistance
• collaboration
• participation
• partnership
• service
• unity