Meaning & use
colonies
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“colonies” is a form of “colony”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meanings
nounplural
Plural of colony: countries or areas ruled by another, more powerful country.
Grammar: This is the plural form; the singular is 'colony'.
Patterns
- former colonies
- British colonies
- a group of colonies
Many former colonies gained independence in the twentieth century.
Britain once governed colonies on several continents.
The thirteen American colonies declared independence in 1776.
nounplural
Plural of colony: groups of the same kind of animal or plant living together in one place.
Grammar: Used for groups of animals such as ants, bees, or birds.
Patterns
- colonies of ants
- nesting colonies
- breeding colonies
Seabirds form large colonies on these cliffs.
Ant colonies can contain millions of workers.
The bats live in colonies inside the cave.
nounplural
Plural of colony: groups of people who settle in a new place but keep ties to their home country.
Grammar: Refers to communities of settlers, not to the territory itself.
Patterns
- settler colonies
- Greek colonies
- establish colonies
The Greeks established colonies along the Mediterranean coast.
These settlements began as farming colonies.
Trade routes linked the colonies with the mainland.
nounpluraltechnical
Plural of colony: small groups of microorganisms growing together on a surface.
Grammar: Used in biology and medicine for bacteria or cells grown in a lab.
Patterns
- bacterial colonies
- cell colonies
- grow colonies
Bacterial colonies appeared on the dish after two days.
Scientists counted the colonies under a microscope.
The sample produced several distinct colonies.
Word forms
| singular | colony |
|---|
Common combinations
- former colonies
- Many former colonies joined the Commonwealth.
- bacterial colonies
- The lab technician examined the bacterial colonies.
- nesting colonies
- The island is famous for its nesting colonies of puffins.
- establish colonies
- European powers established colonies across the region.
- colonies of ants
- There were colonies of ants under every stone.
Synonyms and how they differ
- settlements
- Use this when you mean places where people have settled; 'colonies' usually adds the idea of control by another country.
- territories
- This is more neutral and often official; 'colonies' suggests dependence on a ruling power.
- outposts
- This fits small, distant settlements, especially military or trading ones, rather than full colonies.
Opposites
Word family
- colony noun
- A single country or area ruled by another, or one group of animals.
- colonial adjective
- Relating to colonies or the period of empire.
- colonialism noun
- The practice of one country controlling another.
- colonist noun
- A person who settles in a colony.
- colonize verb
- To establish control over another place and settle there.
Commonly confused: colonies or colons? colonies or colonize?
colonies vs colons
'Colons' is the plural of 'colon', the punctuation mark or part of the intestine, while 'colonies' comes from 'colony'.
colonies vs colonize
'Colonies' is a noun; 'colonize' is the verb meaning to set up a colony.
Practice
Which sentence uses the plural 'colonies' correctly?
Choose one answer.
'Colonies of seabirds' correctly uses the plural noun for groups of animals. Option 0 confuses 'colonies' with 'colons', option 2 uses a plural where a singular 'colon' is needed, and option 3 uses a noun where the verb 'colonize' is required.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “colonies”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.