word-vault/dist/data/cards/co/collective.json

A lightweight JavaScript package for English word definitions and collections.

{
    "term": "collective",
    "partOfSpeech": "adjective",
    "ox5000": true,
    "cefr": "c1",
    "definitions": [
        {
            "senseNumber": 1,
            "definition": "done or shared by all members of a group of people; involving a whole group or society",
            "cefr": "c1",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "**collective leadership/decision-making/responsibility**"
                },
                {
                    "text": "collective memory *(= things that a group of people or a community know or remember, that are often passed from parents to children)*"
                },
                {
                    "text": "It was formed as a permanent association of employers to represent their collective interests."
                },
                {
                    "text": "MPs heaved a collective sigh of relief when the news was announced last night."
                },
                {
                    "text": "The austerities of wartime Europe were still fresh in the collective memory."
                },
                {
                    "text": "There has to be a balance between individual choice and collective responsibility."
                },
                {
                    "text": "We encourage collective decision-making about patient care, involving medical staff, the patient and family."
                }
            ],
            "topics": ["Discussion and agreement", "People in society"]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": 2,
            "definition": "used to refer to all members of a group",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "The collective name for mast, boom and sails on a boat is the ‘rig’."
                }
            ]
        }
    ],
    "pronunciations": {
        "uk": [
            {
                "pronunciation": "/kəˈlektɪv/",
                "audio": "co/collective/collective__gb_1.mp3"
            }
        ],
        "us": [
            {
                "pronunciation": "/kəˈlektɪv/",
                "audio": "co/collective/collective__us_1.mp3"
            }
        ]
    },
    "wordOrigin": "late Middle English (in the sense ‘representing many individuals’): from Old French collectif, -ive or Latin collectivus, from collect- ‘gathered together’, from the verb colligere, from col- ‘together’ + legere ‘choose or collect’."
}