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Synonyms

kibbutz

American  
[ki-boots, -boots] / kɪˈbʊts, -ˈbuts /

noun

plural

kibbutzim

  1. (in Israel) a community settlement, usually agricultural, organized under collectivist principles.

kibbutz British  
/ kɪˈbʊts /

noun

  1. a collective agricultural settlement in modern Israel, owned and administered communally by its members and on which children are reared collectively

"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
kibbutz Cultural  

  1. plur. kibbutzim (ki-boot-seem) A communal farm or settlement in Israel. Kibbutzim have helped build national spirit in Israel, and the residents have transformed barren land into fertile, crop-producing land.

Etymology

Origin of kibbutz

1930–35; < Modern Hebrew kibuṣ; compare Hebrew qibbūṣ gathering

Explanation

A kibbutz is a cooperative Israeli farming community. Kibbutzim provide about forty percent of Israel's agricultural output. The first kibbutz was formed in 1909, and back then farming was even more important than it is in today's kibbutzim (yes, this is the plural form of kibbutz). The original philosophy of kibbutzim was somewhat utopian, a belief in the creation of a perfect, equal society, and based in socialist ideals of shared ownership and a communal lifestyle. The word comes from the Modern Hebrew qibbus, "a gathering."

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Vocabulary lists containing kibbutz

The Middle East and Central Asia - Introductory

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The Middle East and Central Asia - Middle School

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The Middle East and Central Asia - High School

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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.

In 1927 he and his wife moved to Palestine, where they helped found a kibbutz and advocated for peaceful coexistence with Arab neighbors.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 17, 2026

Gvili was captured during the 7 October Hamas attacks - a police officer, recovering from a broken shoulder, who went to defend nearby kibbutz Alumim.

From BBC • Dec. 12, 2025

According to the Hostages Families Forum, he "fled to a shelter in the kibbutz with other foreign students, deflected a live grenade with his bare hands, and through his bravery saved many lives".

From BBC • Oct. 14, 2025

Israeli-Argentinian brothers David and Ariel Cunio were kidnapped along with several relatives while hiding in the safe room of David's home in Nir Oz kibbutz.

From Barron's • Oct. 13, 2025

I can't figure out, according to the instructions, how much farther to the kibbutz.

From "What the Night Sings" by Vesper Stamper

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.