Partners

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˈpɑɹt.nɚz/

Definitions

1. A collective of individuals engaged in joint efforts for a specific aim
2. People who share ownership or management in a business or enterprise ; individuals who maintain a close romantic or personal connection
3. Members joined together to operate or manage a commercial undertaking ; people involved in a committed emotional or intimate relationship

Etymology: Partners began as heirs. In Middle English, "partener" and "parcener" named a joint heir, someone who shared an inheritance with others, and that sense came from Old French "parçonier," "joint heir," built on "parçon," "partition," which traces back to Latin "partītiō," "portion" or "division." Sharing a legacy out in parts is the idea that the modern sense grew from. The word's shape wandered too. Some scholars note that it may also reflect Old French "part tenour," "part holder," and that alteration under the influence of the Middle English "part" pushed the spelling toward the form we use now. "Parcener" survives as a doublet, a separate English word from the same source, though it is rare today. Over time the sense widened from sharing a fortune to sharing any enterprise or life. The modern meanings, business associates and romantic or intimate companions, are both extensions of the original idea of holding a share together.

Synonyms: associates, colleagues, companions

Antonyms: opponents, rivals