associate

The word “associate” means to connect one thing or idea with another in your mind. In plain terms, to link things in your mind or spend time with someone, or (as a noun) a colleague or partner.

“Associate” is pronounced uh-SOH-shee-uht (/əˈsoʊʃi.ət/ in IPA).

Here is “associate” used in a sentence: “Most people associate the color red with danger.”

Words with a similar meaning to “associate” include adjunct, business partner, cohort, colaborer /colabourer, collaborator and colleague.

The opposite of “associate” — its antonyms — is disassociate.

Depending on how it is used, “associate” can be a verb, a noun and an adjective.

The word “associate” comes from Latin. From Latin associatus, past participle of associare ("to join, unite"), from ad- plus socius ("companion, ally").

“Associate” is a fairly common word in modern English, usually learned at around the B1 level.

Both link things together, but associate is chiefly mental, describing an idea or feeling that comes to mind alongside something else. Connect is broader and can be physical, such as connecting two pipes. You associate a smell with a memory, but you connect a cable to a socket.

People routinely associate the smell of pine with Christmas, a particular song with a past relationship, or a brand's logo with quality. In each case the mind automatically links the two, so encountering one calls the other to mind, even without any deliberate effort.

In the sense defined here, yes: it means linking ideas in your mind. But associate has other uses too. It can mean to spend time with people, as in "he associates with artists," and as a noun it names a colleague or business partner. Context decides the meaning.