# membership

/ˈmɛmbɝˌʃɪp/ (US) · /mˈɛmbəʃˌɪp/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/membership
Updated: 2026-06-19

## Senses

### 1. status of belonging

noun · CEFR B1

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

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

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

### 2. the group of members

noun · CEFR B2

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

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

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

### 3. set theory

noun · CEFR C1 · Technical

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

For teachers: the relation between an element and the set that contains it.

- In this math problem, we need to check the membership of each number in the set.
- The proof relies on the membership of the variable within the defined set of real numbers.

Usage: Often represented by the symbol ∈.

## Examples

- I need to renew my gym membership this month.
- The committee decided to offer free membership to students to encourage more young people to join the local history society.
- While the organization boasts a large global membership, active participation in its annual voting process remains disappointingly low among the younger demographic.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.