society

- definition

What are red words?

90% of the time, speakers of English use just 7,500 words in speech and writing. These words appear in red, and are graded with stars. One-star words are frequent, two-star words are more frequent, and three-star words are the most frequent.

Thesaurus

The thesaurus of synonyms and related words is fully integrated into the dictionary entries. Click on the T button in an entry to review the synonyms and related words for that meaning.

noun

/səˈsaɪəti/

singular	society
plural	societies

Other entries for this word

Related dictionary definitions

1
[uncountable] people in general living together in organized communities, with laws and traditions controlling the way that they behave towards one another
Society has to be prepared to support its elderly people.
The scheme aims to encourage the reintegration of prisoners into society.
Thesaurus entry for this meaning of society
1. a.
  [countable] the people who live in a particular country or area, or who belong to a particular time
  The protesters were drawn from a broad cross section of society.
  Good writing still has a place in contemporary society.
  The novels reflect the values of Victorian society.
  Thesaurus entry for this meaning of society
2. b.
  [countable/uncountable] a particular type or section of society
  The question is whether we have sufficient resources to sustain an industrial society.
  Never forget that we live in a multicultural society.
  affluent society (=a society in which many people are rich):
  In today's affluent society people are becoming increasingly discontented.
  Thesaurus entry for this meaning of society
  See also polite society
2
the group of people in a country who are rich and fashionable or are from a high social class
Thesaurus entry for this meaning of society
1. a.
  [only before noun] relating to the parties, weddings, performances etc that rich and fashionable people go to
  This is going to be the biggest society wedding of the year.
  Thesaurus entry for this meaning of society
3
[countable] an organization or club for people who have a particular interest or who take part in a particular activity
She joined the local history society and made some new friends.
Thesaurus entry for this meaning of society
See also building society
4
[uncountable] mainly literary the company or friendship of other people
Thesaurus entry for this meaning of society

This is the British English definition of society. View American English definition of society.

Change your default dictionary and thesaurus to American English.

View the pronunciation for society.

cyberloafing

using the Internet where you work, during working hours, for activities which are not work-related

BuzzWord Article

More BuzzWords

BuzzWord archive

Word of the Day

neutron

the part of the nucleus of an atom that has no electrical charge

Open Dictionary

show a bit of ankle

… to reveal a small part of your intentions in order to attract support, without actually committing yourself to doing anything

add a word

More submissions

view entries

Blog

A must for anyone with an interest in the changing face of language. The Macmillan Dictionary blog explores English as it is spoken around the world today.

global English and language change from our blog