colleagues

IPA/ˈkɒl.iːɡ/
KK[kˈɑliɡz]IPA/ˈkɑː.liːɡ/

colleagues — noun

  • colleaguessingular
  • colleaguesesplural

1. people in the same workplace or profession who do their jobs alongside you

1.nounA2
Definition

people in the same workplace or profession who do their jobs alongside you

Example

Jin asked his colleagues to review the clinic schedule before lunch.

colleagues + to-infinitive request

After the merger, Nia met colleagues from Seoul during online training.

colleagues from + place

Common collocations
  • close colleagues
  • former colleagues
  • consult colleagues
  • among colleagues
Synonyms
  • coworkers

    A common term for people who work for the same employer, often more about the shared workplace than the profession.

  • teammates

    Narrower because it usually means people on the same team rather than everyone in the workplace.

  • peers

    Stresses similar rank or level and does not always imply working together every day.

Grammar Patterns

colleagues + plural verb

colleagues at + workplace

colleagues from + organization

Usage Note

This plural form is used for more than one person. It often refers to people in the same workplace, but it can also include people in the same profession at different organizations.

Common Mistakes

My colleague are waiting downstairs.
My colleagues are waiting downstairs.
use the plural noun and a plural verb when you mean more than one person.
The two colleagues is from accounting.
The two colleagues are from accounting.
a plural subject takes are, not is.

Word family

  • colleague
    nounA2
  • collegial
    adjectiveC1
  • collegiality
    nounC2

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Colleague is a professional word for someone you work with or someone in the same field. Coworker usually points more directly to sharing the same employer or office. Teammate is narrower because it suggests one project group, sports side, or department team. Peer emphasizes equal level, status, or experience, so a peer may not actually work beside you. In a hospital, a doctor can talk about colleagues across different branches, but the nurses on one shift may be described more naturally as coworkers or teammates.

colleague ↗coworker ↗teammate ↗peer ↗

Common collocations

Verbs

Phrases

  • among colleagues
  • work with colleagues

Adjectives

Etymology

LatinFrenchEnglish

Colleagues comes from colleague, which entered English through French from Latin collega, a word for a person appointed together with another person to the same office. Over time, the meaning widened from official partners in a post to people who work in the same job setting or profession.

First known use

1533

1533, in the meaning defined above