Meanings
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1
noun
a formal meeting at which specialists give presentations and discuss a particular subject
The university hosted a symposium on the future of constitutional government.
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2
noun
a published collection of articles or essays by several contributors on one subject
The journal issued a symposium in which six historians debated the new interpretation.
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3
noun
in ancient Greece, a drinking party accompanied by conversation, music, or philosophical discussion
At the symposium, the guests mixed wine with water and debated the nature of justice.
Thesaurus
Etymology
Through Latin symposium from Ancient Greek symposion, 'drinking party', formed from syn, 'together', and pinein, 'to drink'. The ancient gathering joined wine with conversation; the modern scholarly sense developed from that association with organized discussion.