fraternity

American  

[fruh-tur-ni-tee] / frəˈtɜr nɪ ti /

noun

• fraternities
  plural

1. a local or national organization of male students, primarily for social purposes, usually with secret initiation and rites and a name composed of two or three Greek letters.

2. a group of persons associated by or as if by ties of brotherhood.

3. any group or class of persons having common purposes, interests, etc..

   the medical fraternity.

4. an organization of laymen for religious or charitable purposes; sodality.

5. the quality of being brotherly; brotherhood.

   liberty, equality, and fraternity.

6. the relation of a brother or between brothers.

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fraternity British  

/ frəˈtɜːnɪtɪ /

noun

1. Gender-neutral form: community. a body of people united in interests, aims, etc

   the teaching fraternity

2. brotherhood

3. a secret society joined by male students, usually functioning as a social club

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonfraternity
  noun
• interfraternity
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• fraternities
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of fraternity

1300–50; Middle English fraternite < Latin frāternitās. See fraternal, -ity

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Explanation

A fraternity is a group of people who work in the same industry or have similar careers. Your dad's fraternity of firefighters holds lots of charity events and get-togethers. Most often, a fraternity is a social club or group made up of men, but it can refer to any organization of people with something in common. At a college or university, a fraternity is a club for men that's by invitation only. Members of these frats, as they are called, often live together in one house and socialize primarily with each other. Fraternity comes from the Latin word fraternitas, meaning "brotherhood."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

fraternity fraternities

The Alpha Epsilon Pi chapter stated that no one affiliated with the fraternity was involved or complicit in the incident.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 14, 2026

Cornell President Michael Kotlikoff said the suspension "will provide time for a thorough review of fraternity life at Cornell to determine whether and how it can safely continue."

From Barron's ● Oct. 13, 2026

De-recognition didn’t abolish the fraternity; it eliminated the university’s leverage over it.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 13, 2026

Following her initial allegations, Cornell shut down the fraternity and temporarily suspended the accused male students, two of whom were later expelled.

From Barron's ● Oct. 13, 2026

“I was in a fraternity, sir,” Snell said.

From "The Great Santini" by Pat Conroy

At many schools, sororities and fraternities provide much-needed housing and anchor social activity on campuses that may have few other options.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026

Editor’s note: In this Future View, students discuss whether universities should abolish fraternities and sororities to protect students.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 13, 2026

Drive fraternities underground and parents and students lose every signal.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 13, 2026

Colleges and universities are constantly kicking fraternities off campus for bad behavior, sometimes suspending them and sometimes expelling them permanently.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2026

Modeled on the fraternities then springing up on college campuses, the group took its name from the Greek word kuklos, meaning band.

From "The Best of Enemies" by Osha Gray Davidson

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Related Words

• camaraderie
• guild
• sorority

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