Workgroup

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˈwəːkɡɹuːp/

Definitions

1. A designated collection of individuals cooperating towards a common aim
2. A group brought together from different areas to work on an assigned task
3. A set of people organized to collaborate on shared objectives

Etymology: "Workgroup" is a plain compound of "work" and "group," joining the Old English "weorc" (deed, labour) with "group," a word borrowed into English from French "groupe," itself from Italian "gruppo." Each part keeps its ordinary sense: a workgroup is a group of people brought together to work on a shared task. The compound is transparent, so the interesting history lies in its parts rather than in any surprise in the whole. "Group" arrived in English in the 1600s as an art term for a arrangement of figures in a painting, and only later spread to mean any collection of people or things. "Workgroup" follows that wider sense, applied to the people who share labour.

Synonyms: team, task force, committee, group, collaborative

Antonyms: individual, solitary, loner, outsider, stranger