name · noun · 9 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
/kənfɛdəˈɹeɪʃən/
rhymes with -eɪʃən
US:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
CMU ARPABET:K AH0 N F EH2 D ER0 EY1 SH AH0 N
Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
1
name
Meaning 1
In Canada, the federal union of provinces and territories which formed Canada, initially New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Ontario, and Quebec, and later including all the others.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
2
name
Meaning 2
In Canada, the federal union of provinces and territories which formed Canada, initially New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Ontario, and Quebec, and later including all the others.
In Canada, the date of Confederation: July 1, 1867.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
3
name
Meaning 3
In Newfoundland, the political union of Newfoundland with Canada.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
4
name
Meaning 4
In Newfoundland, the political union of Newfoundland with Canada.
In Newfoundland, the date of Confederation: March 31, 1949.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
5
noun
Meaning 5
A union or alliance of states or political organizations.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: alliance, confederacy, federation, league
Antonyms: none provided
6
noun
Meaning 6
The act of forming an alliance.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
7
noun
Meaning 7
the act of forming an alliance or confederation
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: alliance
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: group action
8
noun
Meaning 8
a union of political organizations
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: confederacy, federation
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: union
Narrower terms: nation, Creek Confederacy, Hanseatic League
9
noun
Meaning 9
the state of being allied or confederated
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: alliance
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: coalition, fusion
History
Etymology
From Middle English confederacion, confideracion and Middle French confédération, from Old French confederacion, from Latin cōnfoederātiō. Doublet of confederacy.
Across languages
Translations
92 source translations are retained for this English entry.
French:
Confédération
— Translations
Afrikaans:
konfederasie
— union or alliance
Albanian:
konfederatë
— union or alliance
Arabic:
كُونْفِدِرَالِيَّة
(kūnfidirāliyya)
— union or alliance
Armenian:
համադաշնություն
(hamadašnutʻyun)
— union or alliance
Azerbaijani:
konfedarasiya
— union or alliance
Azerbaijani:
حكومت اجتماعيه
(hökumæt-i-ijtimā'yie)
— union or alliance
Azerbaijani:
حكومت مجتمعه
(hökumæt-i-mujtæmæ)
— union or alliance
Belarusian:
канфедэра́цыя
(kanfjederácyja)
— union or alliance
Belarusian:
канфэдэра́цыя
(kanfederácyja)
— union or alliance
Bengali:
পরিসংঘ
(poriśoṅgho)
— union or alliance
Bengali:
মিত্রসংঘ
(mitrośoṅgho)
— union or alliance
Bulgarian:
конфедера́ция
(konfederácija)
— union or alliance
Burmese:
ကွန်ဖက်ဒရေးရှင်း
(kwanhpakda.re:hrang:)
— union or alliance
Catalan:
confederació
— union or alliance
Chinese Mandarin:
邦聯 /邦联
(bānglián)
— union or alliance
Czech:
konfederace
— union or alliance
Danish:
konføderation
— union or alliance
Dutch:
statenbond
— union or alliance
Dutch:
confederatie
— union or alliance
Estonian:
konföderatsioon
— union or alliance
Finnish:
liitto
— union or alliance
Finnish:
valtioliitto
— union or alliance
Finnish:
konfederaatio
— union or alliance
French:
confédération
— union or alliance
Galician:
confederación
— union or alliance
Georgian:
კონფედერაცია
(ḳonpederacia)
— union or alliance
German:
Bund
— union or alliance
German:
Bündnis
— union or alliance
German:
Konföderation
— union or alliance
German:
Eidgenossenschaft
— union or alliance
German:
Staatenbund
— union or alliance
German:
Staatenbündnis
— union or alliance
Greek:
συνομοσπονδία
(synomospondía)
— union or alliance
Greek:
κοινόν
(koinón)
— union or alliance
Greek:
ένωση
(énosi)
— union or alliance
Haitian Creole:
konfederasyon
— union or alliance
Hebrew:
קוֹנְפֶדֶרַצְיָה
(konfederátsya)
— union or alliance
Hindi:
परिसंघ
(parisaṅgh)
— union or alliance
Hungarian:
konföderáció
— union or alliance
Hungarian:
államszövetség
— union or alliance
Icelandic:
samband
— union or alliance
Icelandic:
bandalag
— union or alliance
Ido:
federuro
— union or alliance
Indonesian:
konfederasi
— union or alliance
Irish:
cónaidhm
— union or alliance
Italian:
confederazione
— union or alliance
Japanese:
国家連合
(kokka rengō)
— union or alliance
Japanese:
コンフェデレーション
(konfederēshon)
— union or alliance
Kazakh:
конфедерация
(konfederasiä)
— union or alliance
Khmer:
សហពន្ធន៍
(saʼhaʼpŏən)
— union or alliance
Korean:
국가 연합
(gukga yeonhap)
— union or alliance
Kyrgyz:
конфедерация
(konfederatsiya)
— union or alliance
Lao:
ສະມາພັນທະລັດ
(sa mā phan tha lat)
— union or alliance
Latvian:
konfederācija
— union or alliance
Lithuanian:
konfederacija
— union or alliance
Macedonian:
конфедерација
(konfederacija)
— union or alliance
Malay:
konfederasi
— union or alliance
Malay:
gabungan
— union or alliance
Norwegian Bokmål:
konføderasjon
— union or alliance
Norwegian Nynorsk:
konføderasjon
— union or alliance
Iranian Persian:
کُنْفِدِراسْیون
(konfederâsyon)
— union or alliance
Polish:
konfederacja
— union or alliance
Portuguese:
confederação
— union or alliance
Romanian:
confederație
— union or alliance
Russian:
конфедера́ция
(konfederácija)
— union or alliance
Scottish Gaelic:
co-fhlaitheas
— union or alliance
Serbo-Croatian:
конфедера́ција
— union or alliance
Serbo-Croatian:
konfederácija
— union or alliance
Slovak:
konfederácia
— union or alliance
Slovene:
konfederacija
— union or alliance
Spanish:
confederación
— union or alliance
Swedish:
konfederation
— union or alliance
Tagalog:
kalaguman
— union or alliance
Tagalog:
kompederasyon
— union or alliance
Tajik:
конфедерасия
(konfederasiya)
— union or alliance
Tajik:
конфедератсия
(konfederatsiya)
— union or alliance
Thai:
สมาพันธ์
(sà-maa-pan)
— union or alliance
Thai:
สมาพันธรัฐ
(sà-maa-pan-tá-rát)
— union or alliance
Turkish:
konfederasyon
— union or alliance
Ottoman Turkish:
عهدلشمه
(âhdleşme)
— union or alliance
Ottoman Turkish:
معاهده
(muâhede)
— union or alliance
Ottoman Turkish:
معاقدت
(mu'aqadet)
— union or alliance
Ottoman Turkish:
مواثقت
(muâśaqat)
— union or alliance
Ottoman Turkish:
متفقین
(muttefiqîn)
— union or alliance
Ukrainian:
конфедера́ція
(konfederácija)
— union or alliance
Urdu:
کَنْفیڈَریشَن
(kanfeḍareśan)
— union or alliance
Uyghur:
كونفېدېراتسىيە
(konfëdëratsiye)
— union or alliance
