com|pan|ion /kəmpæ njən/ (companions ) N‑COUNT A companion is someone who you spend time with or who you are travelling with. □ Fred had been her constant companion for the last six years of her life. □ I asked my travelling companion what he thought of the situation. WORD HISTORY companion
A companion was originally someone you liked enough to share a meal with. The Latin word companio consists of the roots com- , meaning 'with' or 'together', and panis , meaning 'bread'.
com|pan|ion|able /kəmpæ njənəb ə l/ ADJ If you describe a person as companionable , you mean they are friendly and pleasant to be with. [WRITTEN , APPROVAL ] ● com|pan|ion|ably /kəmpæ njənəbli/ ADV [ADV with v] □ They walked companionably back to the house.
com|pan|ion|ship /kəmpæ njənʃ I p/ N‑UNCOUNT Companionship is having someone you know and like with you, rather than being on your own. □ I depended on his companionship and on his judgment.
com|pan|ion|way /kəmpæ njənwe I / (companionways ) N‑COUNT A companionway is a staircase or ladder that leads from one deck to another on a ship.
com|pa|ny ◆◆◆ /kʌ mpəni/ (companies )
1 N‑COUNT A company is a business organization that makes money by selling goods or services. □ Sheila found some work as a secretary in an insurance company. □ …the Ford Motor Company.
2 N‑COUNT A company is a group of opera singers, dancers, or actors who work together. □ …the Phoenix Dance Company.
3 N‑COUNT A company is a group of soldiers that is usually part of a battalion or regiment, and that is divided into two or more platoons. □ The division will consist of two tank companies and one infantry company.
4 N‑UNCOUNT Company is having another person or other people with you, usually when this is pleasant or stops you feeling lonely. □ 'I won't stay long.'—'No, please. I need the company'. □ [+ of ] Ross had always enjoyed the company of women. □ I'm not in the mood for company.
5 → see also joint-stock company , public company
6 PHRASE If you say that someone is in good company , you mean that they should not be ashamed of a mistake or opinion, because it is shared by many others, or by someone important or successful. □ If you find it difficult to cope with your family you are in good company because most people feel the same.
7 PHRASE If you have company , you have a visitor or friend with you. □ He didn't say he had had company.
8 PHRASE When you are in company , you are with a person or group of people. □ When they were in company she always seemed to dominate the conversation.
9 PHRASE If you feel, believe, or know something in company with someone else, you both feel, believe, or know it. [FORMAL ] □ Saudi Arabia, in company with some other Gulf oil states, is concerned to avoid any repetition of the two oil price shocks of the 1970s.
10 PHRASE If you keep someone company , you spend time with them and stop them feeling lonely or bored. □ Why don't you stay here and keep Emma company?
11 PHRASE If you keep company with a person or with a particular kind of person, you spend a lot of time with them. □ He keeps company with all sorts of lazy characters.
12 PHRASE If two or more people part company , they go in different directions after going in the same direction together. [WRITTEN ] □ The three of them parted company at the bus stop. [Also + with ]
13 PHRASE If you part company with someone, you end your association with them, often because of a disagreement. [FORMAL ] □ [+ with ] The tennis star has parted company with his Austrian trainer. □ We have agreed to part company after differences of opinion. SYNONYMS company NOUN 1
business: The company was a family business.
firm: The firm's employees were expecting large bonuses.
corporation: …multi-national corporations.
concern: If not a large concern, the nursery was at least a successful one.
multinationaclass="underline" …multinationals such as Ford and IBM.
co m|pa|ny ca r (company cars ) N‑COUNT A company car is a car which an employer gives to an employee to use as their own, usually as a benefit of having a particular job, or because their job involves a lot of travelling. [BUSINESS ]
co m|pa|ny se c|re|tary (company secretaries ) N‑COUNT A company secretary is a person whose job within a company is to keep the legal affairs, accounts, and administration in order. [BRIT , BUSINESS ]
com|pa|rable /kɒ mpərəb ə l/
1 ADJ Something that is comparable to something else is roughly similar, for example in amount or importance. □ …paying the same wages to men and women for work of comparable value. □ [+ to ] Farmers were meant to get an income comparable to that of townspeople. □ [+ with ] The risk it poses is comparable with smoking just one cigarette every year.
2 ADJ If two or more things are comparable , they are of the same kind or are in the same situation, and so they can reasonably be compared. □ In other comparable countries real wages increased much more rapidly. □ By contrast, the comparable figure for the Netherlands is 16 per cent.
com|para|tive /kəmpæ rət I v/ (comparatives )
1 ADJ [ADJ n] You use comparative to show that you are judging something against a previous or different situation. For example, comparative calm is a situation which is calmer than before or calmer than the situation in other places. □ …those who manage to reach the comparative safety of Fendel. □ The task was accomplished with comparative ease. ● com|para|tive|ly ADV [ADV adj/adv] □ …a comparatively small nation. □ …children who find it comparatively easy to make and keep friends.