interest group

American  

noun

1. a group of people drawn or acting together in support of a common interest or to voice a common concern.

   Political interest groups seek to influence legislation.

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interest group Cultural  

1. An organized group that tries to influence the government to adopt certain policies or measures. Also called pressure group. (See lobby.)

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Etymology

Origin of interest group

First recorded in 1905–10

Example Sentences

But as I said earlier, it’s always been from a particular interest group, not the Department of Justice and not the head of the executive branch.

From Slate • May 12, 2026

“So does he want to take on that interest group and alienate them? I don’t know.”

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 7, 2025

Tamas noted, however, that the Working Families Party has been unusually durable, even if it is acting mostly as an interest group in the Democratic coalition.

From Salon • Oct. 26, 2024

G77: Stands for the “Group of 77,” a developing-countries interest group that formed within the U.N. in 1964.

From Seattle Times • Sep. 18, 2023

No interest group has meaning except with reference to other interest groups; and those other interest groups are pressures; they count in the government process.

From Introduction to the Science of Sociology by Park, Robert Ezra

Related Words

• lobby
• political action committee
• pressure group