coterie

[koh-tuh-ree]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR coterie ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a group of people who associate closely.

an exclusive group; clique.

a group of prairie dogs occupying a communal burrow.

Origin of coterie

1730–40; < French, Middle French: an association of tenant farmers < Medieval Latin coter(ius) cotter² + -ie -y³

Synonym study

1. See circle.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for coterie

cadre, circle

Examples from the Web for coterie

Contemporary Examples of coterie

Yet as Emily Bazelon revealed in Slate, a coterie of right-wing organizations has indeed lined up to oppose contraception itself.
Do Corporations Believe in God? The ‘Hobby Lobby’ Case Has the Answer
Jay Michaelson
March 22, 2014
Barbra Streisand and Denzel Washington, along with a coterie of A-listers, have sent their toddlers there.
Elite America’s Summer Preschool Madness
Eliza Shapiro
June 23, 2013
Quick-witted, sharp-tongued, and flirtatious, Anne drew a coterie of men to her, and each would lose his head for her.
Why Does Anne Boleyn Obsess Us?
Lauren Elkin
April 25, 2013
While Aspinall provided the wealthy clientele, the mobsters provided a coterie of highly skilled cardsharps.
Lord Lucan’s Whereabouts: The Tabloid Rebirth of a Decades-Old Crime
William Coles
February 25, 2012
And President Bashar al-Assad, no doubt, sees that his coterie of regional despots is thinning out.
Can the Rebels Hang On?
Babak Dehghanpisheh
August 27, 2011

Historical Examples of coterie

The event established Mary as the arbiter in her own coterie.
Within the Law
Marvin Dana
These fishermen are representative of the coterie who fish for records.
Tales of Fishes
Zane Grey
It was this trial that the coterie of commanders had gathered together to discuss.
The Shellback's Progress
Walter Runciman
She who only met with sympathy, who did not belong to any coterie!
Artists' Wives
Alphonse Daudet
Cicily, my dear, I think you are well rid of that coterie of cats.
Making People Happy
Thompson Buchanan

British Dictionary definitions for coterie

coterie

noun

a small exclusive group of friends or people with common interests; clique

Word Origin for coterie

C18: from French, from Old French: association of tenants, from cotier (unattested) cottager, from Medieval Latin cotārius cotter ²; see cot ²

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

Word Origin and History for coterie

1738, from French coterie "circle of acquaintances," originally in Middle French an organization of peasants holding land from a feudal lord (14c.), from cotier "tenant of a cote" (see cottage).