For Individuals|For Teachers
Vocapedia
Log inTry for Free
Log in

Looking up...

Words

  • Words of the Year
  • Recent Lookups
  • My Own Dictionary

Languages

  • English
  • Vietnamese
  • Japanese
  • Chinese
  • Spanish
  • French
  • Korean
  • German

Features

  • Words of the Year
  • My Collections List
  • Reviews
  • Learning Resources
  • Community Collections

Learn

  • How It Works
  • Study Guides
  • Language Tips
  • FAQ
  • Getting Started

Community

  • Forum
  • Blog
  • Help Center
  • Partnerships

About

  • About Vocapedia
  • Contact Us
  • Feedback

Legal

  • Terms of Use
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Accessibility
  • GDPR Compliance
© 2026 Vocapedia. All rights reserved.

association

/əˌsoʊsiˈeɪʃən/
noun★Intermediate
formal

A connection or cooperative relationship between people or organizations.

The association between the two companies led to significant growth.

The partnership between the two organizations resulted in mutual benefits.

💡

Can refer to both formal and informal relationships.

psychology

A mental link between ideas, concepts, or experiences.

The psychologist studied the association between trauma and memory loss.

The researcher examined the connection between traumatic events and memory impairment.

💡

In psychology, this often refers to learned connections in the mind.

Collocations

form an associationto establish a connection or relationshipbusiness associationa formal group of companies or professionalsmental associationa psychological link between ideas

Synonyms

Antonyms

Related Phrases

free associationphrase
a psychological technique where a person says whatever comes to mind
association footballphrase
soccer

💡Pro Tip

Formal vs. Informal Use

Use 'association' for formal relationships; for casual connections, consider 'link' or 'tie'.

⚡Gold Rule

Psychology Context

In psychology, 'association' refers to learned mental connections, not just literal relationships.

📖Word Origin

From Middle French 'association' (14th century), from Latin 'associatio', meaning 'a joining together'.

📝Usage Notes

In formal contexts, often refers to organized groups or partnerships. In psychology, refers to mental connections.

Word Breakdown

asso-
together
prefix
+
-ciatio
action of joining
suffix
+
-n
noun form
suffix
English Dictionary

Learning Progress

Track your learning journey!

• Save words to build your vocabulary

• Monitor your daily streak

• Get personalized review reminders

• See words learned statistics

Log in to access advanced features and track your progress!

Go to Dashboard →