consortium
Americannoun
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a combination of financial institutions, capitalists, etc., for carrying into effect some financial operation requiring large resources of capital.
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any association, partnership, or union.
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Law. the legal right of partners in a marriage to companionship and conjugal intercourse with each other.
In a wrongful death action the surviving spouse commonly seeks damages for loss of consortium.
noun
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an association of financiers, companies, etc, esp one formed for a particular purpose
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law the right of husband or wife to the company, assistance, and affection of the other
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of consortium
1820–30; < Latin: partnership, equivalent to consort- consort + -ium -ium
Explanation
Consortium is a fancy word for a group you form for an enterprise beyond what any one member could do alone. All the grocery stores in your neighborhood might form a consortium for the promotion of local strawberries. Consortium comes from the verb consort, which means "to accompany or associate." Consortium used to mean "fellowship, participation, society," but these days you're more likely to hear consortium for an association of different institutions like schools or companies than, say, a consortium of philosophical frog lovers. Still, consortiums usually preserve the ideals of fellowship, with every member institution chipping in to reach a common goal.
Vocabulary lists containing consortium
The Boys in the Boat
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"Simon's Saga," Vocabulary from Episode 25
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The Gene
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Omani officials have proposed establishing a regional consortium that would oversee maritime security, search-and-rescue operations and other cooperation, said officials familiar with the matter.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026
His decision to step away from the west London club appears to pave the way for him to lead a consortium of investors seeking to purchase a reported 30% stake in the Anfield club.
From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2026
A consortium led by British-Indian millionaire businessman Amit Bhatia has expressed an interest in buying a minority stake in Liverpool.
From BBC ● Jul. 21, 2026
"An investment consortium led, managed, and represented by Amit Bhatia has expressed interest in making a strategic minority investment in Liverpool Football Club," an FSG spokesperson told AFP.
From Barron's ● Jul. 21, 2026
Mr. Sharpe, we divined, represented a consortium of investors.
From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume I: The Pox Party" by M.T. Anderson
But consortia funding these projects include publicly traded companies.
From Barron's ● Apr. 12, 2026
Many of the listed entities weren’t treaty organizations of which the U.S. was formally a member but rather funds, conferences or informal consortia that a country could participate in or not, carrying no obligations.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 2, 2026
Financial institutions are now forming consortia for cross-border settlement.
From MarketWatch ● Jan. 16, 2026
The consortia that oversee shipping include companies from numerous other countries.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 11, 2025
Later-life outcomes were mostly studied with genetic summary information from large independent consortia.
From Science Daily ● Mar. 1, 2024
Representatives of the three bidding consortiums each placed their bids for the 75 percent stake on offer in a transparent box.
From Barron's ● Dec. 23, 2025
The legacy media is facing all kinds of financial reversals, and I think it’s tied up in the ownership of a lot of papers by big corporate consortiums who have to worry about their shareholders.
From Slate ● Dec. 11, 2024
“Should there be need for more capital, he’s somebody who’s very adept at putting consortiums together.”
From Seattle Times ● Mar. 16, 2024
The group faces competition to buy Chelsea from consortiums led by Los Angeles Dodgers co-owner Todd Boehly and co-owner of the Boston Celtics Stephen Pagliuca.
From BBC ● Apr. 21, 2022
"However, international treaties and consortiums discourage nuclear testing," the firm said in a report summary.
From Reuters ● Apr. 4, 2022
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
