collective

1 of 2

adjective

col·​lec·​tive kə-ˈlek-tiv How to pronounce collective (audio)
1
: denoting a number of persons or things considered as one group or whole
flock is a collective word
2
a
: formed by collecting : aggregated
b
of a fruit : multiple
3
a
: of, relating to, or being a group of individuals
b
: involving all members of a group as distinct from its individuals
a collective action
4
: marked by similarity among or with the members of a group
the collective interests of the town
5
: collectivized or characterized by collectivism
collective farming
collective communities
6
: shared or assumed by all members of the group
collective responsibility
the collective opinion of the staff
collective guilt
collectively adverb

collective

2 of 2

noun

1
: a collective body : group
a social collective
2
: a cooperative unit or organization
specifically : collective farm
3
: a helicopter control system governing lift

Examples of collective in a Sentence

Adjective We made a collective decision to go on strike. The incident became part of our collective memory. the collective wisdom of generations
Recent Examples on the Web
Adjective
Foster has made some early efforts in these endeavors by meeting with officials from the Men of Westwood collective and passing out T-shirts bearing the collective’s name before a UCLA basketball game. Ben Bolch, Los Angeles Times, 13 Mar. 2024 As would become the pattern, the collective determination to redress the wrongs of slavery evaporated under opposition. Nikole Hannah-Jones, New York Times, 13 Mar. 2024 The more recent tradition of collective leadership, a model that came to the fore after the chaos of Mao Zedong’s strongman rule, has taken a backseat once again under Xi. Simone McCarthy, CNN, 11 Mar. 2024 These real money slots boast dynamic prize pools fueled by players’ collective wagers. Sponsored Content, The Mercury News, 11 Mar. 2024 Deloitte’s Impact Day Another example of fostering a collective sense of purpose through corporate volunteering comes from Deloitte. Alexander Puutio, Forbes, 1 Mar. 2024 But somehow Jones’ secondhand claims about Meek have become the headline takeaway — an indictment of our collective value system. Andre Gee, Rolling Stone, 29 Feb. 2024 Other times, a collective roar of motorcycles suggests the Höss household isn’t alone in trying to drown out the horror. Michael Andor Brodeur, Washington Post, 28 Feb. 2024 The new venture — Star India Private Limited — will be controlled by Reliance, with its affiliates holding a collective 63% stake, while Disney will own the rest. William Gavin, Quartz, 28 Feb. 2024
Noun
Connor Leahy, founder and CEO of Conjecture AI and a former cofounder of open-source AI collective EleutherAI, will also talk about AI’s biggest risks and what can be done to head them off. Jeremy Kahn, Fortune, 12 Mar. 2024 Savvy, who is also a musician, launched the collective in 2017. Melinda Newman, Billboard, 8 Mar. 2024 And to mark the 50th anniversary of the collective, about 250 items in 2021 were sent back to Taloyoak in an exhibition. Melanie Stetson Freeman, The Christian Science Monitor, 29 Feb. 2024 The collective allegedly made a specific offer to a player in the portal considering FSU. Gary Bedore, Kansas City Star, 24 Feb. 2024 He’s found incredible success both as part of a larger collective and on his own, and now one of his most recent hits has tied a record set by BTS a few years ago. Hugh McIntyre, Forbes, 29 Feb. 2024 No Other Land, directed by a collective of Israeli and Palestinian filmmakers, traces the Israeli government’s attempts to expel Palestinians in Masafer Yatta, a rural village in the occupied West Bank. Scott Roxborough, The Hollywood Reporter, 24 Feb. 2024 Through this work András investigated the relationship between individuals and the environment surrounding them, and how individual actions are connected with and influenced by the collective. Caterina De Biasio, Vogue, 23 Feb. 2024 Nitro Circus, an actions sports collective of which Archer was a member, confirmed his death in a statement on Instagram. Ingrid Vasquez, Peoplemag, 22 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'collective.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English collectif, borrowed from Anglo-French & Medieval Latin; Anglo-French, borrowed from Medieval Latin collēctīvus, going back to Late Latin, "comprehensive, (in logic and grammar) inferential," going back to Latin, "preceding by inference, deductive," from collēctus, past participle of colligere "to gather together, assemble, accumulate, deduce, infer" + -īvus -ive — more at collect entry 2

Noun

derivative of collective entry 1

First Known Use

Adjective

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

1655, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of collective was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near collective

Cite this Entry

“Collective.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/collective. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

collective

1 of 2 adjective
col·​lec·​tive kə-ˈlek-tiv How to pronounce collective (audio)
1
: having to do with a number of persons or things considered as one group
"flock" is a collective noun
2
: formed by collecting
3
: of, relating to, or involving all members of a group
the collective feelings of the team
collective legal action
4
: shared or done by a number of persons as a group
a collective effort
collectively adverb

collective

2 of 2 noun
1
: a collective body : group
2
: a cooperative unit or organization

Legal Definition

collective

adjective
col·​lec·​tive kə-ˈlek-tiv How to pronounce collective (audio)
: involving all members of a group as distinct from individual members
collectively adverb

More from Merriam-Webster on collective

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