Consolidation

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /kənˌsɒlɪˈdeɪʃ(ə)n/

Definitions

1. The process of bringing together disparate parts to form a unified whole involves merging entities for greater strength and effectiveness
2. The act of combining various pieces into a single, more effective unit ; the process of making something stronger or more secure
3. Joining distinct parts into a cohesive structure ; enhancing stability or firmness in a system or organization

Etymology: Consolidation starts with a Latin verb, "consolidare," which combined "con-" (together) with "solidare," to make solid, from "solidus," meaning solid or firm. The core idea is literal: to make things hard and whole, or to pack separate parts into one firm mass. Latin medical writers used the related verb for healing, as when broken bones knit together, and that sense of joining fragments into a sound whole is never far from the word. The noun came from the Latin "consolidatio," the act of making solid. English took it in its general sense of forming into one solid body, and the meaning has stayed close to that picture ever since. Businesses merge, debts are combined into a single loan, and the word still describes parts drawn into one mass.

Synonyms: unification, merger, integration, combination, amalgamation

Antonyms: fragmentation, separation, division, dissolution, scattering