company

English Online Dictionary. What means company‎? What does company mean?

English

Alternative forms

• companie (obsolete)

Etymology

From Middle English companye (“a team; companionship”), from Old French compaignie (“companionship”) (Modern French: compagnie), possibly from Late Latin *compania, but this word is not attested. Old French compaignie is equivalent to Old French compaignon (Modern French: compagnon) + -ie. More at companion.

Displaced native Old English werod, gefer, getæl, and hired.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈkʌmp(ə)ni/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈkʌmpəni/
• Rhymes: -ʌmpni, -ʌmpəni
• Hyphenation: com‧pany

Noun

company (countable and uncountable, plural companies)

1. A team; a group of people who work together professionally.
   1. A group of individuals who work together for a common purpose.

   2. (military) A unit of approximately sixty to one hundred and twenty soldiers, typically consisting of two or three platoons and forming part of a battalion.
   3. A unit of firefighters and their equipment.

   4. (nautical) The entire crew of a ship.
   5. (espionage, informal) An intelligence service.

2. A small group of birds or animals.
3. (law) An entity having legal personality, and thus able to own property and to sue and be sued in its own name; a corporation.

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:enterprise
4. (business) Any business, whether incorporated or not, that manufactures or sells products (also known as goods), or provides services as a commercial venture.
5. (uncountable) Social visitors or companions.
6. (uncountable) Companionship.

Synonyms

• (in legal context, a corporation): corporation
• (group of individuals with a common purpose): association, companionship, fellowship, organization, society
• (companionship): fellowship, friendship, mateship

Hyponyms

See also Thesaurus:enterprise.

Derived terms

Related terms

• accompany
• companion
• discompany

Descendants

• → Hindi: कंपनी (kampnī)
• → Hokkien: 公班衙 (kong-pan-gêe / kong-pan-gê)
• → Malay: kompeni
• → Scottish Gaelic: companaidh
• → Swahili: kampuni

Translations

Verb

company (third-person singular simple present companies, present participle companying, simple past and past participle companied)

1. (archaic, transitive) To accompany, keep company with.
2. (archaic, intransitive) To associate.
3. (obsolete, intransitive) To be a lively, cheerful companion.
4. (obsolete, intransitive) To have sexual intercourse.

Synonyms

• (to accompany): attend, escort, go with
• (to have sexual intercourse): fornicate, have sex, make love; see also Thesaurus:copulate

Catalan

Etymology

Inherited from Late Latin compāniō, from Latin cum + pānis (“bread”). This form was inherited from the Latin nominative, while the variant companyó came from the accusative compāniōnem.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Central) [kumˈpaɲ]
• IPA^(key): (Balearic, Valencia) [komˈpaɲ]
• Rhymes: -aɲ

Noun

company m (plural companys, feminine companya)

1. companion, colleague
2. partner, mate

Derived terms

• acompanyar

Related terms

• companyia

References

Further reading

• “company” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.

Middle English

Noun

company

1. Alternative form of companye