n.
Pronunciation: s ə - ' s ī - ə -t ē
Function: noun
Inflected Form: plural -ties
Etymology: Middle French societé, from Latin societat-, societas, from socius companion ― more at SOCIAL
Date: 1531
1 : companionship or association with one's fellows : friendly or intimate intercourse : COMPANY
2 : a voluntary association of individuals for common ends especially : an organized group working together or periodically meeting because of common interests, beliefs, or profession
3 a : an enduring and cooperating social group whose members have developed organized patterns of relationships through interaction with one another b : a community, nation, or broad grouping of people having common traditions, institutions, and collective activities and interests
4 a : a part of a community that is a unit distinguishable by particular aims or standards of living or conduct : a social circle or a group of social circles having a clearly marked identity <literary society > b : a part of the community that sets itself apart as a leisure class and that regards itself as the arbiter of fashion and manners
5 a : a natural group of plants usually of a single species or habit within an association b : the progeny of a pair of insects when constituting a social unit (as a hive of bees) broadly : an interdependent system of organisms or biological units