cooperative

American  

[koh-op-er-uh-tiv, -op-ruh-tiv, -op-uh-rey-tiv] / koʊˈɒp ər ə tɪv, -ˈɒp rə tɪv, -ˈɒp əˌreɪ tɪv /

Or co-operative

adjective

1. working or acting together willingly for a common purpose or benefit.

2. demonstrating a willingness to cooperate.

   The librarian was cooperative in helping us find the book.

3. pertaining to economic cooperation.

   a cooperative business.

4. involving or denoting an educational program comprising both classroom study and on-the-job or technical training, especially in colleges and universities.

---

noun

1. a jointly owned enterprise engaging in the production or distribution of goods or the supplying of services, operated by its members for their mutual benefit, typically organized by consumers or farmers.

2. Also called co-op.  Also called cooperative apartment. 

   1. a building owned and managed by a corporation in which shares are sold, entitling the shareholders to occupy individual units in the building.

   2. an apartment in such a building.

cooperative British  

/ kəʊˈɒpərətɪv, -ˈɒprə- /

adjective

1. willing to cooperate; helpful

2. acting in conjunction with others; cooperating

3. 1. (of an enterprise, farm, etc) owned collectively and managed for joint economic benefit

   2. (of an economy or economic activity) based on collective ownership and cooperative use of the means of production and distribution

---

noun

1. a cooperative organization

2. Sometimes shortened to: coop.  Also called: cooperative apartment.  a block of flats belonging to a corporation in which shares are owned in proportion to the relative value of the flat occupied Compare condominium

Other Word Forms

• co-operatively adverb
• co-operativeness noun
• cooperatively adverb
• cooperativeness noun
• uncooperative adjective
• uncooperatively adverb
• uncooperativeness noun

Etymology

Origin of cooperative

From the Late Latin word cooperātīvus, dating back to 1595–1605. See cooperate, -ive

Explanation

As an adjective, cooperative describes working together agreeably for a common purpose or goal as in cooperative play or cooperative employee. As a noun, a cooperative is a jointly-owned business or enterprise where members pool their resources to purchase, do work, and/or distribute things. You might join a food cooperative, for example, which jointly purchases a farmer's labor and then every member gets a basket of fresh fruits and vegetables each week of the growing season. In this use, the word is often shortened to co-op. You might also join a housing cooperative where you own your apartment and you and the other owners jointly care for the upkeep of the building and grounds.

Example Sentences

Asked by the BBC about those issues, he outlined the difficulties in interviewing multiple people, some of whom were "cooperative" and some who weren't, plus looking at all the evidence.

From BBC • Apr. 22, 2026

The findings are published in the journal Molecular Ecology in a paper titled 'Social structure and interactions differentially shape aerotolerant and anaerobic gut microbiomes in a cooperative breeding species.'

From Science Daily • Apr. 13, 2026

Across the island, they have been experimenting with agro-ecology, animal traction, local inputs and cooperative models.

From Salon • Apr. 11, 2026

"The Morettis... have never refused to answer a single question. They have always been fully cooperative, and that remains the case today and will continue to be," Meier told AFP.

From Barron's • Apr. 8, 2026

She explained that the cooperative had begun to go downhill and that the partners had had to look for higher-paying jobs and that even Mustafa had gone back to his country.

From "The House of the Spirits: A Novel" by Isabel Allende

Related Words

• collegial
• concerted
• coordinated
• harmonious
• interdependent
• reciprocal
• symbiotic
• united