What does collection mean?
A collection is a group of things — objects, works, data, or even people — brought together and kept as a set, usually with some element of purpose or care behind the gathering. The word also names the act itself: the collection of taxes, of rent, or of household rubbish all describe processes of taking things in rather than assembling them for display. Most familiarly, a collection suggests something deliberately accumulated over time, such as stamps, coins, books, or art, often reflecting the collector's personal taste or an institution's mission. Fashion houses use the term for a season's coordinated range of garments, while churches speak of the collection as money gathered during a service. Derived from the Latin colligere, 'to gather together', the word is neutral in tone and indispensable across everyday, commercial, and cultural language.
A group of things or people gathered together, especially one accumulated systematically or with care.
"He has an impressive collection of rare first editions."
Often modified by the type of item: stamp collection, art collection, record collection.
The act or process of gathering or taking in things, such as payments, taxes, or refuse.
"The council has suspended bin collections over the holiday period."
A sum of money collected, particularly donations gathered during a religious service.
"The Sunday collection goes toward maintaining the church roof."
A range of clothing or designs produced by a fashion house for a particular season.
"The designer unveiled her autumn/winter collection at Paris Fashion Week."
The plural is regular. 'Collections' commonly refers to multiple distinct sets (e.g. several museum collections) or to repeated instances of the collecting process (e.g. weekly refuse collections).
"The library's special collections include medieval manuscripts and early printed books."
The word 'collection' comes from the Latin colligere — literally 'to gather together' — the same root that gives us 'college', originally a body of people collected for learning.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of collection
Collection derives from the Latin colligere, formed from com- ('together') and legere ('to gather, pick'), which entered English via Old French in the late Middle Ages, with noun use well established by the 15th century. The same Latin root legere underlies a family of English words including select, elect, and intellect, all built on the idea of picking out or gathering. Its sense of a systematically assembled group of objects developed alongside the growth of museums and private cabinets of curiosities in early modern Europe.
Related word forms
How collection is actually used
The word is neutral in register and works equally well in everyday speech and formal writing. In fashion and publishing contexts it carries a slightly elevated, curated connotation; in administrative contexts (tax collection, debt collection) it is purely functional.
Easily confused with collection
Collation means the act of comparing texts or arranging pages in order, whereas collection is the gathering of items into a group.