colony

colony — noun

1. A territory under the control of a distant, more powerful nation — the ruling po

1.nounB2
Definition

A territory under the control of a distant, more powerful nation — the ruling power manages its trade, laws, and political life, often for its own economic benefit.

Example

Portugal governed the colony of Brazil for more than three hundred years.

colony + of + country name — possessive structure

The official arrived from London to manage the colony's trade and taxes.

possessive: colony's + noun

Common collocations
  • former colony
  • British colony
  • colonial power
  • establish a colony
  • colony of [country]
  • grant independence to a colony
Synonyms
  • territory

    broader term — a territory may or may not be politically controlled by a foreign power (e.g. an overseas territory with partial self-rule)

  • protectorate

    a territory that keeps its own local rulers but is protected and controlled by a more powerful country in foreign affairs

  • dominion

    historical term for a self-governing territory within the British Empire, more autonomous than a colony

Antonyms
  • independent nation

    a country that governs itself and is not controlled by any outside power

Grammar Patterns

colony + of + country

Usage Note

Commonly paired with a possessive or 'of' phrase naming the ruling country. Frequently appears in historical and political contexts discussing imperialism and decolonisation.

Common Mistakes

Taiwan was a colony of Japan for 50 years.' (usage is correct — this is the right sense)
No correction needed
but ensure 'colony' is not confused with 'country': a colony is ruled by another nation, whereas a country is self-governing.

2. People from one country who move overseas permanently and build a community whil

2.nounC1
Definition

People from one country who move overseas permanently and build a community while preserving political and cultural links with their country of origin.

Example

A small colony of Dutch farmers settled in the fertile valley near Cape Town.

colony of + [occupation/nationality] + settled in [place]

The Swedish colony in Delaware traded furs and timber with the local tribes.

Common collocations
  • founded a colony
  • established a colony
  • colony of settlers
  • join a colony
  • farming colony
  • trading colony
Synonyms
  • settlement

    focuses on the physical place where settlers live, rather than the community of people

  • diaspora community

    a group of people living far from their original homeland, but diaspora usually implies dispersal rather than a single settlement

Grammar Patterns

colony + of + national/ethnic group

Usage Note

Distinguish from sense 1 (POLITICAL TERRITORY): this sense focuses on the PEOPLE who settle, not on the TERRITORY they occupy. The colony-as-people may exist even after the territory gains independence.

Common Mistakes

The British colony had a strong economy.' (unclear — could mean the territory or the people).
The British settlers in the colony built a strong economy.
use 'settlers' to clarify when referring to the people.

3. A community of people who share the same occupation, hobby, or background and li

3.nounC1
Definition

A community of people who share the same occupation, hobby, or background and live close together, often in a relatively isolated setting away from the general population.

Example

The old hotel became a summer colony for painters and sculptors from the city.

summer colony — seasonal community for a shared interest

A colony of retired doctors lived together in the seaside village near the cliffs.

Common collocations
  • artists' colony
  • writers' colony
  • fishing colony
  • leper colony
  • summer colony
  • research colony
Synonyms
  • enclave

    a distinct area where a particular group lives, often implying a cultural or ethnic boundary rather than a shared hobby

  • commune

    a group living together and sharing resources, usually by choice and with a shared ideology

Grammar Patterns

[occupation/adjective] + colony

Usage Note

Often used in compound nouns where the first word names the shared attribute (e.g. artists' colony, leper colony, mining colony). The shared element can be a profession, health condition, or cultural identity.

Common Mistakes

My friends and I are a colony of gamers.' (informal overuse — colony implies a physical, settled community).
A colony of artists lived in the warehouse district.
use for a real, settled group, not any social circle.

4. A group of creatures or plants that belong to one species and live together in o

4.nounB2
Definition

A group of creatures or plants that belong to one species and live together in one place, often with a social structure or a shared nest.

Example

A large colony of ants marched across the kitchen floor toward the sugar bowl.

colony of + [insect] — typical pattern for insects

The coral colony stretched for miles beneath the clear blue water near the reef.

Common collocations
  • ant colony
  • bee colony
  • coral colony
  • penguin colony
  • colony of ants
  • colony of seabirds
  • breeding colony
Synonyms
  • nest

    a specific structure built by animals (especially birds, insects) to live in, not the group itself

  • hive

    specifically a bee colony and its home, implying a highly organised social structure

  • swarm

    a large moving group of insects, especially bees or locusts, not a settled colony

Grammar Patterns

colony + of + species

Usage Note

Often functions as a collective noun: 'the colony is' (singular verb) for the group as a unit, or 'the colony are' (plural verb) for the individual members. In biology, 'colony' can also refer to bacteria or cells grown in a lab dish.

Common Mistakes

I saw a colony of birds.' (acceptable but vague — better to name the species).
I saw a colony of penguins on the shore.
naming the species makes the colony concrete.

5. Several residential buildings constructed close together in a bounded area, typi

5.nounB2
Definition

Several residential buildings constructed close together in a bounded area, typically built by a company or employer for its workforce to occupy near a mine, factory, or railway.

Example

The railway company built a colony of wooden houses beside the tracks for its workers.

built a colony of houses — colony as a physical housing development

Each family in the workers' colony had a small garden and two rooms.

workers' colony — compound noun for employer-built housing

Common collocations
  • workers' colony
  • mining colony
  • housing colony
  • company colony
  • colony of houses
  • build a colony
Synonyms
  • housing estate

    a planned residential area, more common in British English; does not imply an employer-built setting

  • company town

    a town where all or most buildings and services are owned by a single employer

Grammar Patterns

workers' colony

mining colony

Usage Note

This sense is most common in South Asian and Southeast Asian English (e.g. a 'housing colony' in India refers to a residential neighbourhood). In other varieties, 'housing estate' or 'housing complex' is more common for modern developments.

Common Mistakes

We bought a house in a new colony near the park.' (correct in Indian English but may confuse other readers).
We bought a house in a new housing estate near the park.
clearer for international audiences.

Word family

  • colonist
    nounB2
  • colonial
    adjectiveB2
  • colonialism
    nounC1
  • colonize
    verbC1
  • colonization
    nounC1
  • colonizer
    nounC1
  • decolonize
    verbC2
  • settler
    nounB2

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

These five words all describe areas under some form of external control or occupation, but they differ in legal status and degree of autonomy. A COLONY is directly governed by a foreign power, usually for economic exploitation — for example, the British colony of India had British officials making all major decisions. A TERRITORY is a broader term for any geographic area under a nation's control; it may have partial self-government (e.g. Puerto Rico is a US territory with its own local elections). A PROTECTORATE keeps its own local rulers and internal administration but cedes control of foreign policy and defence to a more powerful nation — the British protectorate over Zanzibar left the sultan in place. A DOMINION, a historical term within the British Empire, was a self-governing entity that recognised the British monarch as head of state while managing its own affairs (e.g. Canada became a dominion in 1867). A SETTLEMENT refers specifically to a place where people have newly established homes, without implying political subjugation — a settlement can grow into an independent town. In everyday usage, 'colony' carries the strongest implication of foreign domination and lack of freedom, while 'dominion' suggests a more equal partnership within an empire.

colony ↗territory ↗protectoratedominionsettlement ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • former colony
  • British colony
  • crown colony
  • overseas colony
  • penal colony
  • space colony

Phrases

  • establish a colony
  • found a colony
  • settle a colony
  • govern a colony
  • grant a colony independence
  • colony of ants
  • workers' colony

Prepositions

  • colony of
  • colony in
  • colony on
  • colony near
  • colony under

Etymology

LatinFrenchEnglish

The word 'colony' comes from Latin 'colonia', which meant a settlement of farmers on newly taken land. 'Colonia' itself came from 'colonus' (farmer, tiller), which derived from 'colere' (to cultivate, to inhabit, to till the soil). The original sense was therefore about people who farmed land in a new place. In the 16th century, as European powers began establishing overseas territories, the meaning shifted from 'a group of settlers' to 'a territory under foreign political control'. The modern biological sense — a group of organisms living together — appeared in scientific writing of the 18th and 19th centuries.