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

"Like-mindedness," "interest-groups," "belief-groups," and "folk-ways" are also convenient refrains.

From College Teaching Studies in Methods of Teaching in the College by Klapper, Paul

A list of the currently available mailing lists is available in at least two places; the first is in a file on ftp.nisc.sri.com called interest-groups under the netinfo/ directory.

From Zen and the Art of the Internet by Kehoe, Brendan P.

Related Words

• lobby
• political action committee
• pressure group