What does "membership" mean?

1. (status of belonging) the state of being a member of a group, club, or organization. 2. (the group of members) all the people who belong to a particular group or organization. 3. (set theory) the fact that an object or number belongs to a specific set.

How do you use "membership"?

Often used with the preposition 'of' or 'in'. Can be followed by a singular or plural verb in British English. Often represented by the symbol ∈.

membership

US //ˈmɛmbɝˌʃɪp// UK //mˈɛmbəʃˌɪp// mem·ber·ship

1 status of belonging (n.)
B1 Intermediate

the state of being a member of a group, club, or organization.

the status or condition of being a member of a collective entity. Uncountable in this abstract sense.

Example

You need to pay a small fee to renew your gym membership every year.

Example

The committee decided to grant her honorary membership in recognition of her lifelong dedication to the local historical society.

Usage

Often used with the preposition 'of' or 'in'.
- belonging
- enrollment
- exclusion
2 the group of members (n.)
B2 Upper Intermediate

all the people who belong to a particular group or organization.

the collective body of members belonging to an organization. Usually treated as a singular collective noun.

Example

The club's membership has grown quickly over the last few months.

Example

The union's membership voted overwhelmingly to reject the latest contract offer from the management team.

Usage

Can be followed by a singular or plural verb in British English.

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3 set theory (n.)
C1 Advanced Technical Math

the fact that an object or number belongs to a specific set.

the relation between an element and the set that contains it.

Example

In this math problem, we need to check the membership of each number in the set.

Example

The proof relies on the membership of the variable within the defined set of real numbers.

Usage

Often represented by the symbol ∈.
- inclusion

Origin

From member + -ship.