congregation

C1 Topic:People & Society

US /ˌkɑŋɡɹəˈɡeɪʃən/ UK /ˌkɒŋɡɹɪˈɡeɪʃən/ See IPA manual

Freq #10595

Meanings

1

noun
A group of people gathered together for a religious service.

The priest asked the congregation to stand and sing the next hymn.
2

noun
The group of people who regularly attend a particular church or place of worship.

The small village church has a congregation of about fifty people.
3

noun
Any large gathering of people in one place.

A congregation of fans waited outside the hotel for the singer's autograph.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · a group of people gathered... flock fold

2 noun · the group of people who... faithful

Word family

Forms congregations

Derived forms congregationalcongregationalismcongregationallycongregationlesscybercongregation

Related forms aggregantaggregate aggregationcongregantcongregate congregator gregarious gregariousness

Appears in

Phrases (1)

See all

large congregation
A substantial group of people gathered for religious worship.

Adjective + noun

Etymology

From Middle English congregacioun, from Old French congregacion, from Latin congregātiō, itself from congregō (“to herd into a flock”). Adopted (1520s) by the English Bible translator William Tyndale, to render the Ancient Greek ἐκκλησία (ekklēsía, “those called together, (popular) meeting”) (hence Latin ecclēsia) in his New Testament, and preferred by 16th century Reformers instead of church. By surface analysis, congregate + -ion.

congregacioun Middle English congregacion Old French congregātiō Latin

View etymology graph ->

Topics

People & Society Word Formation & Derivatives

External links

# congregation

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C1
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /ˌkɑŋɡɹəˈɡeɪʃən/
**IPA (UK):** /ˌkɒŋɡɹɪˈɡeɪʃən/
**Frequency rank:** 10595

## Meanings
1. A group of people gathered together for a religious service.
2. The group of people who regularly attend a particular church or place of worship.
3. Any large gathering of people in one place.

## Examples
- The priest asked the congregation to stand and sing the next hymn.
- The small village church has a congregation of about fifty people.
- A congregation of fans waited outside the hotel for the singer's autograph.

## Derived Forms
- congregational
- congregationalism
- congregationally
- congregationless
- cybercongregation

## Related Forms
- aggregant
- aggregate
- aggregation
- congregant
- congregate
- congregator
- gregarious
- gregariousness

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: congregacioun
- Root: congregacion
- Root: congregātiō

## Etymology
From Middle English congregacioun, from Old French congregacion, from Latin congregātiō, itself from congregō (“to herd into a flock”). Adopted (1520s) by the English Bible translator William Tyndale, to render the Ancient Greek ἐκκλησία (ekklēsía, “those called together, (popular) meeting”) (hence Latin ecclēsia) in his New Testament, and preferred by 16th century Reformers instead of church. By surface analysis, congregate + -ion.

## AI Etymology
Congregation is from Middle English congregacioun, from Old French congregacion, from Latin congregātiō, itself from congregō (“to herd into a flock”). Adopted (1520s) by the English Bible translator William Tyndale, to render the Ancient Greek ἐκκλησία (ekklēsía, “those called together, (popular) meeting”) (hence Latin ecclēsia) in his New Testament, and preferred by 16th century Reformers instead of church. By surface analysis, congregate + -ion. The analysis is mainly morphological: the modern nominal form is built from the named base and affix. Important recorded forms include congregacioun (Middle English), congregacion (Old French), and congregātiō (Latin). Current senses include a group of people gathered together for a religious service, the group of people who regularly attend a particular church or place of worship, and any large gathering of people in one place. The wider family includes derived forms such as congregational, congregationalism, congregationally, congregationless, and cybercongregation and related words such as aggregant, aggregate, aggregation, congregant, and congregate.

## Topics
- People & Society
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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