collaborate

collaborate — verb

1. To join with another person or group in a shared effort to create, develop, or c

1.verbintransitiveC1
Definition

To join with another person or group in a shared effort to create, develop, or carry out a project, piece of work, or goal.

Example

The two artists collaborated on a mural for the city library.

collaborate + on + project

Leila and Kofi collaborated with the design team on the new app interface.

collaborate + with + someone + on + something

Common collocations
  • collaborate on a project
  • collaborate with experts
  • collaborate closely
  • collaborate effectively
Synonyms
  • cooperate

    Broader term — can mean simply being helpful or compliant, not necessarily working jointly on the same task

  • team up

    More informal, often used for temporarily joining forces on a specific project

  • join forces

    Suggests combining resources or effort for a common aim, often in business or military contexts

  • partner

    More formal and business-oriented; implies a structured, often long-term relationship

Antonyms

Grammar Patterns

collaborate + with + someone

collaborate + on + something

collaborate + to-infinitive

Usage Note

Frequently paired with prepositions: 'with' introduces the person or group, and 'on' introduces the task or project. Can also be followed by a 'to'-infinitive to state the shared goal. The adverb 'closely' is a common modifier.

Common Mistakes

We collaborated together on the report.
We collaborated on the report.
'Together' is redundant because 'collaborate' already means working jointly.
I collaborated with my friend to finish the homework.
My friend and I collaborated on the science fair project.
'Collaborate' implies a significant joint effort; for everyday help, use 'work with' or 'help.'

2. To willingly assist or cooperate with an enemy force that has occupied your own

2.verbintransitive
Definition

To willingly assist or cooperate with an enemy force that has occupied your own country, especially during a war — an act viewed as treason.

Example

During the war, anyone who collaborated with the occupying army faced trial after liberation.

negative political sense: collaborate with + occupying force

The documentary shows how some local officials secretly collaborated with the invading forces.

Common collocations
  • collaborate with the enemy
  • collaborate with occupying forces
  • accused of collaborating
Synonyms
  • collude

    Also negative but broader — can mean secret cooperation for deceitful purposes beyond wartime

  • fraternize

    Suggests friendly association with an enemy, not necessarily active assistance

  • consort with the enemy

    An idiomatic expression with the same meaning, used especially in historical and legal contexts

Antonyms
  • resist

    To oppose the enemy rather than assist it

Grammar Patterns

collaborate + with + enemy / occupying force

Usage Note

This sense carries a strongly negative moral judgment — it implies betrayal of one's own country. Distinguish from sense 1 (WORK WITH) by the wartime/occupation context: the object of 'collaborate with' here is always an enemy or occupying force.

Common Mistakes

He collaborated with the new manager on the project.
He worked with the new manager on the project.
Do not use the negative 'enemy' sense for everyday workplace situations; use 'work with' or 'cooperate.'

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: verb/1

'Cooperate' is the broadest of these terms — it can mean simply being helpful or following instructions ('The witness cooperated with the police') without implying shared creative input. 'Collaborate' goes further: it suggests active, joint intellectual or creative effort toward a common goal, as when two research labs work together on a single experiment. 'Team up' is noticeably more informal, often used for a temporary, specific purpose ('The two chefs teamed up for a charity dinner'). 'Join forces' emphasizes pooling resources, and appears in both business and military contexts ('The two companies joined forces to enter the Asian market'). 'Partner' carries a formal, often contractual tone, common in business language ('The firm partnered with a local distributor'). For everyday academic or professional writing where the focus is on shared creative or intellectual input, 'collaborate' is the most precise choice.

cooperate ↗team up ↗join forcespartner ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

  • in partnership with
  • as part of a team

Prepositions

Etymology

LatinFrenchEnglish

From Latin 'collaboratus', combining 'com-' (together) and 'labōrāre' (to work). The word entered English through French in the 1800s. Its neutral sense of 'working jointly' was the original meaning. The negative sense — cooperating with an occupying enemy — became widely used during World War II to describe those who assisted Nazi occupation forces.