synergy
noun
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An old saying, "The whole is greater than the sum of its parts", expresses the basic meaning of synergy. The word is sometimes used in a purely physical sense, especially when talking about drugs; sometimes a "cocktail" of drugs may be more effective than the sum of the effectiveness of each of the separate drugs. But the word is best known in the world of business. The notion that, when the right two companies merge, they'll produce a profitable synergy seemed exciting in the 1990s, when synergy became a trendy buzzword (even though it's actually been around since the 17th century). The idea of synergy was one factor in what became a "merger mania;" unfortunately, business synergy often turned out to be harder to achieve than to imagine.
Examples of synergy in a Sentence
Brett Knight, Forbes.com, 18 Sep. 2025
The synergies between Artistic Milliners and Cone Denim were displayed at Kingpins New York in July.
—Angela Velasquez, Sourcing Journal, 18 Sep. 2025
Simply put, they were born for this collaboration — like a composer and performer whose synergy creates something beyond what each might have otherwise realized.
—Kansas City Star, 18 Sep. 2025
China produces nearly half the world’s industrial robots, giving the country a possible synergy between hardware and software.
—Nicholas Gordon, Fortune, 17 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for synergy
Cite this Entry
“Synergy.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/synergy. Accessed 20 Sep. 2025.
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