alliance

¹

[ uh-lahy-uhns ]

noun

1. the act of allying or state of being allied.

   Synonyms: affiliation, partnership, bloc, combination, coalition, association

2. a formal agreement or treaty between two or more nations to cooperate for specific purposes.

   Synonyms: compact, pact

3. a merging of efforts or interests by persons, families, states, or organizations:

   an alliance between church and state.

4. the persons or entities so allied.
5. marriage or the relationship created by marriage between the families of the spouses.
6. correspondence in basic characteristics; affinity:

   the alliance between logic and metaphysics.

Alliance

²

[ uh-lahy-uhns ]

noun

1. a city in NE Ohio.

Alliance

¹

/ əˈlaɪəns /

noun

1. 1. the Social Democratic Party and the Liberal Party acting or regarded as a political entity from 1981 to 1988
   2. ( as modifier )

      an Alliance candidate

alliance

²

/ əˈlaɪəns /

noun

1. the act of allying or state of being allied; union; confederation
2. a formal agreement or pact, esp a military one, between two or more countries to achieve a particular aim
3. the countries involved in such an agreement
4. a union between families through marriage
5. affinity or correspondence in qualities or characteristics
6. botany a taxonomic category consisting of a group of related families; subclass

Other Words From

• inter·al·liance noun adjective
• nonal·liance noun
• preal·liance noun
• proal·liance adjective
• real·liance noun
• subal·liance noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of alliance¹

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English aliance, from Old French; equivalent to ally + -ance

Word History and Origins

Origin of alliance¹

C13: from Old French aliance, from alier to ally

Synonym Study

Alliance, confederation, league, union all mean the joining of states for mutual benefit or to permit the joint exercise of functions. An alliance may apply to any connection entered into for mutual benefit. League usually suggests closer combination or a more definite object or purpose. Confederation applies to a permanent combination for the exercise in common of certain governmental functions. Union implies an alliance so close and permanent that the separate states or parties become essentially one.

Example Sentences

Now a member of the Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment, she is advocating for low-income housing in single-family neighborhoods near good jobs and schools.

From Los Angeles Times

“We want to make sure that we are able to break the curse around the decades-long segregation of Black and brown communities in Los Angeles,” said Estuardo Mazariegos, a co-director of the Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment, a group that advocates for low-income communities.

From Los Angeles Times

The documents, marked top secret, were shareable between the Five Eyes intelligence alliance, made up of the US, Britain, Canada, New Zealand and Australia.

From BBC

“It’s built off a model that all of us governors have already successfully pioneered through the Reproductive Freedom Alliance,” he said.

From Salon

SAG-AFTRA said it has filed an election petition to represent intimacy coordinators employed by companies in the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers.

From Los Angeles Times