What does "solidarity" mean?

1. (personal support) the act of showing you care about someone who is in a difficult situation. 2. (Polish political movement) the name of the famous trade union movement in Poland that helped end communism.

solidarity

US //ˌsɑɫəˈdɛɹəti// UK //sˌɒlɪdˈæɹɪti// sol·i·dar·i·ty

1 personal support (n.)
C1 Advanced Formal

the act of showing you care about someone who is in a difficult situation.

the expression of support for another person facing hardship or requiring assistance.

Example

The community showed solidarity with the families who lost their homes in the fire.

Example

The international community expressed its solidarity with the victims of the earthquake by providing immediate financial and medical assistance.
- indifference
2 Polish political movement (n.)
C2 Proficiency Formal

the name of the famous trade union movement in Poland that helped end communism.

the Polish trade union and social movement founded in 1980, which played a central role in the end of communist rule in Poland.

Example

Solidarity was the first independent trade union in a Soviet-bloc country.

Example

The rise of Solidarity in the 1980s served as a catalyst for democratic transitions across Eastern Europe.
- solidarność

Origin

By surface analysis, from English solidary + -ity, or from French solidarité (“solidarity”), from solidaire (“characterized by solidarity”), from Latin solidum (“whole sum”), neuter of solidus (“solid”).