partner
Americannoun
-
partners
plural
-
a person who shares or is associated with another in some action or endeavor; sharer; associate.
- Synonyms:
- accomplice, accessory, colleague
-
Law.
-
a person associated with another or others as a principal or a contributor of capital in a business or a joint venture, usually sharing its risks and profits.
-
-
a spouse; a husband or a wife.
-
the person with whom one cohabits in a romantic relationship.
I'd like you to meet my partner, Sarah.
-
either of two people who dance together.
my favorite partner in the waltz.
-
a player on the same side or team as another.
My tennis partner was an excellent player.
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Nautical. partners, a framework of timber round a hole in a ship's deck, to support a mast, capstan, pump, etc.
verb (used with object)
-
partners,
present (3rd person singular)
-
partnered,
past participle, past
-
partnering
present participle
-
to associate as a partner or partners with.
-
to serve as the partner of.
noun
-
an ally or companion
a partner in crime
-
a member of a partnership
-
one of a pair of dancers or players on the same side in a game
my bridge partner
-
either member of a couple in a relationship
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
partnersimple
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partnerssimple
-
have partneredperfect
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has partneredperfect
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am partneringprogressive
-
are partneringprogressive
-
is partneringprogressive
-
have been partneringperfect progressive
-
has been partneringperfect progressive
Past
-
partneredsimple
-
had partneredperfect
-
was partneringprogressive
-
were partneringprogressive
-
had been partneringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of partner
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English partener, alteration of parcener by association with part
Explanation
If you open a lemonade stand with your brother, then your brother is your business partner. Partner means "to pair up." At a square dance, the call "partner up!" means it's time to find someone to dance with. In business, there are often multiple partners — each one owns a share of the business, and has a share of the risk. Some people call their spouse or the person they're in a long-term relationship with their partner — it has more egalitarian senses than "husband" or "wife," and signals commitment even if you're not married.
Vocabulary lists containing partner
"Macbeth" Vocabulary from Act I
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Relationships
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Chapter 20: The Industrial Age
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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:
They are named after black widow spiders because of the way the neutron star gradually destroys its partner.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 10, 2026
"You can't be cruel to numbers and maths," wrote Dr Barry Scannell, technology partner at Irish law firm William Fry, on LinkedIn, external.
From BBC ● Oct. 9, 2026
The man who had been my husband, lover, sports companion and partner became increasingly a different and unappealing obligation.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 9, 2026
Treasury sanctioned ZedPay and Rezazadeh this July, along with Oimakhmadov and Zanjani’s sister and romantic partner.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2026
Aldo asked me as he grasped the mop like a dancer holding his partner.
From "The World According to Humphrey" by Betty G. Birney
"That will bring all law enforcement partners to work together closely and much more quickly to stop anything like this happening in the future," he said.
From BBC ● Oct. 9, 2026
Disney wants to enlist digital creators in broader roles like show development, not just as marketing partners, Chief Marketing and Brand Officer Asad Ayaz says.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026
The chamber is a tech-industry coalition whose corporate partners include OpenAI and other major players in AI.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 8, 2026
You can see how Mr. Trump, in contrast to earlier presidents, came to his opinions on nationalism and tariffs, and his skepticism of allies and trading partners.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026
This was a big deal for Audrey—I knew how badly she wanted us to be partners.
From "Keep It Together, Keiko Carter" by Debbi Michiko Florence
But what if you happen to be partnered with the person making the sound, stuck in a room with him for hours on end like your very livelihood depends on it?
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 8, 2026
Over the last few months, to test the process, reporters from ProPublica partnered with local journalists in three states to establish private schools.
From Salon ● Oct. 4, 2026
In years that followed Nike partnered with generational talents Tiger Woods, Serena Williams and Cristiano Ronaldo, who all donned the Swoosh on their way to golf, tennis and football greatness.
From BBC ● Oct. 1, 2026
In July, the New York Mets partnered with Novig, becoming the first Major League Baseball to ink a deal with a prediction market.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 30, 2026
We alternate teams until each of us has partnered.
From "Piecing Me Together" by Renée Watson
NASA’s Low Earth Orbit Program provides reliable access to space while maximizing research and development by partnering with private U.S. companies, including SpaceX, to transport astronauts to and from the International Space Station.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 8, 2026
“But I’m not too worried about partnering with Amazon.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026
The company has also been improving its virtual reality headsets and smart glasses, partnering with celebrities such as Kylie Jenner and brands like Ray-Ban and Oakley to market them.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 24, 2026
Clark agrees the brand has "homed in on experts in their craft, rather than partnering with a million different people" like other fashion brands have made the mistake of doing.
From BBC ● Sep. 18, 2026
Benji's mind flashed to Felix partnering with Jeremy and putting as much distance between himself and Benji as possible.
From "Millionaires for the Month" by Stacey McAnulty
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.
