noun
1.
the quality or state of being associated
worked in close association with the courts
Synonyms: affiliation, alliance, cahoots, combination, conjointment, conjunction, connection, hookup, partnership, tie-up, togetherness
Related Word: coaction, collaboration, concert, cooperation, teamwork; conviviality, gaiety, joviality, sociability
Contrasted words: aloofness, apartness, disjunction, disunion, isolation, separation
Antonyms: disassociation, dissociation
2.
an organization of persons sharing a common interest or purpose
a buyers' association
Synonyms: brotherhood, club, congress, fellowship, fraternity, guild, league, order, society, sodality, union
Related Word: alliance, axis, bloc, coalition, federation, organization; faction, interest, sect, wing; combine, gang, machine, ring
3.
Synonyms: league 4, circuit, conference, loop, wheel
4.
something (as a feeling or recollection) associated in the mind with a particular person or thing
the thought of her childhood home always carried an association of loving warmth
Synonyms: connotation, hint, implication, overtone, suggestion, undertone
Related Word: image, picture, vision; appearance, fantasy, illusion, mirage