unionnoun
uk/ˈjuː.nj.ən/us/ˈjuː.nj.ən/union noun (JOINING)
B2 [ S or U ] the act or the state of being joined together:
Meanwhile the debate on European political and monetary union continues.
formal She believes that the union (= marriage) of man and woman in holy matrimony is for ever.
the Union
[ S ] (in the American Civil War) the states that did not separate from the United States
More examples
- The signing of the treaty marked a major milestone on the road to European union.
- The two countries are holding a summit to discuss economic and monetary union.
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Connecting and combining
- abut
- adjoin
- aggregate
- allied
- amalgamate
- assemblage
- bind
- conjunction
- desegregate
- dovetail
- eclectic
- entwine
- fuse
- fusion
- linkage
- lump sb/sth together
- marriage
- marry
- meld
- merge
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union noun (WORKERS)
B1 [ C, + sing/pl verb ] a trade union :
the electricians' union
More examples
- Management are having discussions with the union about possible redundancies.
- The car workers' union is demanding a 7% pay rise this year.
- Her debating skills were honed in the students' union.
- The union decided to ballot its members on the issue .
- The union safeguards the interests of all its members.
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Industrial relations
- arbitrate
- arbitration
- bargaining power
- closed shop
- collective bargaining
- convenor
- flying picket
- free collective bargaining
- guild
- industrial relations
- labor union
- labour relations
- local
- non-union
- shop steward
- student union
- the TUC
- trade union
- unionize
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