cooperation

American  

[koh-op-uh-ray-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.

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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

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• co-operationist
  noun
• cooperationist
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• cooperations
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of cooperation

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

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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

"He may also have sought Beijing's active support and cooperation ahead of a possible summit with Trump in Shenzhen."

From Barron's ● Oct. 24, 2026

Announcing the visit, the US State Department had earlier said that it would focus on energy cooperation, commercial investment and economic ties.

From BBC ● Oct. 23, 2026

The leaders also underlined their "intent to deepen bilateral and multilateral cooperation" on defence and security, the joint statement said.

From Barron's ● Oct. 22, 2026

They also found that cooperation was associated with traits like seniority and age, meaning older, more experienced executives tended to ask colleagues to participate more often than others.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 20, 2026

Inside the bunker, cooperation is the order of the day.

From "Mockingjay" by Suzanne Collins

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

"At the same time, it will also be beneficial to depending China and professional exchanges and pragmatic cooperations with the relevant countries' navies."

From Reuters ● Feb. 25, 2016

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

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Related Words

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

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