What does "collection" mean?
A set of items or amount of material procured, gathered or presented together.
Collection
/kəˈlɛkʃən/ noun
noun ·Very common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A set of items or amount of material procured, gathered or presented together.
- Grammar: collection is listed as noun.
- Nearest alternatives: assemblage, assembling, collecting, abundance.
- Useful contrasts: classical music compositions, more single, a single.
- Usage evidence: Science is far more than a collection of facts and methods.
How to use "collection"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "collection" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "collection" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "collection" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "collection" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "collection" is acting as noun in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "assemblage" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "collection", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A set of items or amount of material procured, gathered or presented together. countable, uncountable
"The attic contains a remarkable collection of antiques, oddities, and random junk."
- 2 the act of gathering something together wordnet
- 3 A set of pitch classes used by a composer. countable, uncountable
"The "collectional information" one receives is ambiguous since the collection { C, E, F, G, A } occurs in the key of C and in the key of F."
- 4 request for a sum of money wordnet
- 5 The activity of collecting. countable, uncountable
"Collection of trash will occur every Thursday."
Show 9 more definitions
- 6 a publication containing a variety of works wordnet
- 7 A set of sets; used because such a thing is in general too large to comply with the formal definition of a set. countable, uncountable
- 8 several things grouped together or considered as a whole wordnet
- 9 A gathering of money for charitable or other purposes, as by passing a contribution box for donations. countable, uncountable
"The people here are very good to each other, too. When someone's house burned down, when someone was in the hospital, they took up collections for the people."
- 10 Debt collection. countable, uncountable
- 11 The act of inferring or concluding from premises or observed facts; also, that which is inferred. countable, obsolete, uncountable
"We may safely say thus, that wrong collections have been hitherto made out of those words by modern divines."
- 12 The jurisdiction of a collector of excise. UK, countable, uncountable
- 13 A set of college exams generally taken at the start of the term. countable, plural-normally, uncountable
- 14 The quality of being collected; calm composure. countable, uncountable
Antonyms
Example
"Science is far more than a collection of facts and methods."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "collection"?
Common synonyms include: assemblage, assembling, collecting, abundance, accumulating, accumulation.
How do you use "collection" in a sentence?
Science is far more than a collection of facts and methods.
How do you pronounce "collection"?
Pronounced /kəˈlɛkʃən/.
Etymology
From Middle English colleccioun, collection, from Old French collection, from Latin collēctiō, collēctiōnem, from collēctus, from colligō (“collect together”), composed of con- + legō (“bring together, gather, collect”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *leǵ- (“to gather, collect”). Equivalen to collect + -ion.