I. as ‧ so ‧ ci ‧ ate 1 S3 W2 /əˈsəʊʃieɪt, əˈsəʊsi- $ əˈsoʊ-/ BrE AmE verb
[ Date: 1300-1400 ; Language: Latin ; Origin: past participle of associare , from ad- 'to' + sociare 'to join' ]
1 . [transitive] to make a connection in your mind between one thing or person and another
associate somebody/something with something
I don’t associate him with energetic sports.
2 . be associated (with somebody/something)
a) to be related to a particular subject, activity etc:
problems associated with cancer treatment
b) ( also associate yourself with somebody/something ) to show that you support someone or something:
He did not associate himself with the pro-democracy movement.
REGISTER
In everyday English, people usually say something comes with or goes with something rather than is associated with it:
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There are some problems that go with this way of doing things.
3 . associate with somebody to spend time with someone, especially someone that other people disapprove of:
I don’t like these layabouts you’re associating with.
II. as ‧ so ‧ ci ‧ ate 2 /əˈsəʊʃiət, əˈsəʊʃiɪt, əˈsəʊsi- $ əˈsoʊ-/ BrE AmE noun [countable]
someone who you work or do business with SYN colleague :
one of his business associates
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THESAURUS
▪ colleague someone who you work with in a company or organization, for example someone working in the same office, or someone teaching in the same school:
Friends and former colleagues described him as a kind and caring man.
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She discovered that her male colleagues were earning more than she was.
▪ workmate British English someone who you work with. Workmate is more informal than colleague :
He went out for a drink with his workmates.
▪ coworker American English someone who you work with:
I was sad to say goodbye to all of my coworkers.
▪ associate someone who you work with, especially another businessman or businesswoman:
They are close friends and business associates.
▪ staff all the people who work for an organization:
The company employs a total of 520 staff.
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a staff meeting
III. associate 3 BrE AmE adjective
associate member/director/head etc someone who is a member etc of something, but who is at a lower level and has fewer rights