Society

How to spell society

7 letters · 4 syllables

How to pronounce society

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does society mean?

1. nounThe aggregate of people living together in an ordered community with shared customs, laws, and institutions.
2. nounAn organised club or association of people united by a shared interest, profession, or purpose.

Society in a sentence

• A fair society depends on equal access to education.

• She joined the local historical society to research her family's past.

• The report examined how technology is changing modern society.

• The debating society meets every Thursday in the main hall.

Where does society come from?

Language of origin: Latin

The word descends from the Latin societas, meaning 'fellowship', 'alliance', or 'association', which was built on socius, a 'companion' or 'ally', someone you join with. English took it in during the 1500s by way of the Old French societe, at first to mean companionship or the company of others. Over time the sense broadened from the simple act of keeping company to the entire ordered community of people living together under shared customs and institutions. The same socius root still shows up in everyday relatives such as 'social', 'associate', and 'sociable', all of which share the idea of joining or partnering. The spelling trap lies in the quiet middle: the 'ci' is pronounced like a soft 's', and the unstressed vowels invite writers to drop or swap letters in 'soci-ety'.

How the word is built

• soci- (from socius: companion, ally)
• -ety (noun-forming suffix denoting state or condition)