mem ‧ ber S1 W1 /ˈmembə $ -ər/ BrE AmE noun [countable]
[ Date: 1300-1400 ; Language: Old French ; Origin: membre , from Latin membrum ]
1 . a person or country that belongs to a group or organization:
The majority of union members voted in favour of a strike.
member of
You can also invite members of your family.
He is a member of the local tennis club.
REGISTER
In everyday English, people usually say there are 4/5 etc people in their family rather than saying that their family has 4/5 etc members :
▪ My family has eight members. ➔ There are eight people in my family.
2 . one of a particular group of animals or plants
member of
The plant is a member of the lily family .
Wolves and domestic dogs are members of the same species.
3 . British English a Member of Parliament
member for
the member for Truro
4 . formal a man’s sex organ SYN penis
• • •
COLLOCATIONS
■ verbs
▪ be a member of something
Lisa is a member of the hockey team.
▪ become a member
Germany became a member of N.A.T.O. in 1954.
■ ADJECTIVES/NOUN + member
▪ a committee/staff/family etc member
Close friendships developed between crew members on the ship.
▪ a leading member (=an important member)
a discussion between leading members of the profession
▪ a senior/junior member (=with a higher or lower rank)
A senior member of the government has resigned.
▪ an active member (=one who takes part in many activities of an organization)
She was an active member of the church.
▪ a founder member (=one who helped start an organization)
He was a founder member of the African National Congress.
▪ a staff member
He became a staff member of the Institute in 2002.
▪ a full member (=one who has all the possible rights of a member)
At that time, women were not allowed to be full members of the club.
▪ an associate member (=one who has fewer rights than a full member)
Turkey is an associate member of the European Union.
▪ a card-carrying member ( also a paid-up member British English ) (=an official member of an organization)
She was a card-carrying member of the Communist Party.
▪ a life member (=one who has paid to be a member for their whole life)
a life member of the Royal Academy of Artists
▪ an honorary member (=one who has been given membership as an honour)
He was made an honorary member of the Botanical Society.
■ phrases
▪ a member of a committee/of staff etc
All members of staff attend regular training sessions.
▪ a member of the public
Members of the public were invited to put forward suggestions.
▪ a member of society (=a citizen)
We want our children to become productive members of society.
■ member + NOUN
▪ a member state/country/nation (=a country that belongs to an international organization)
the member states of the European Union