Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A small, often select group of persons who associate with one another frequently.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun A set or circle of persons who are in the habit of meeting for social, scientific, or literary intercourse, or other purposes; especially, a clique.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun A set or circle of persons who meet familiarly, as for social, literary, or other purposes; a clique.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun A circle of people who associate with one another.
  • noun An exclusive group of people, who associate closely for a common purpose; a clique.
  • noun A communal burrow of prairie dogs.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun an exclusive circle of people with a common purpose

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[French, from Old French, peasant association, from cotier, cottager, from *cote, cottage, possibly of Germanic origin.]

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Examples

Comments

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  • Would we three make up a coterie?

    Asks she to he (and me).

    March 16, 2010

  • As far as I can see, o

    duffy & friend, we're a trio.

    March 16, 2010