- company
- company, party, band, troop, troupe are comparable when they denote a group of persons who are associated in a joint endeavor or who are assembled for a common end.Company is the general term for either a temporary assemblage or a permanent association of individuals who join forces{
the glorious company of the apostles— Book of Common Prayer
}{the whole company of thinkers who have written philosophy— Sullivan
}A party is a company assembled temporarily for a common purpose{search party
}{dinner party
}{a party of visitors from the country
}A band is a company united by a common tie or purpose; the term implies closer organization and a less casual coming together than does company{the robbers worked in bands
}{a band of musicians
}{that small, transfigured band . . . whose one bond is, that all have been unspotted by the world— Arnold
}A troop is a company or band that works or acts together in close formation or in unanimity; the term frequently suggests a throng or multitude{there entertain him all the saints above, in solemn troops, and sweet societies— Milton
}{a mobile and dynamic troop whose major aims are the improvement of the mind— Hauser
}In specific use troop is applied to a band of soldiers or, in the plural troops, to soldiers collectively{farewell the plumed troop, and the big wars— Shak.
}{British troops
}When the reference is to a company of performers (especially on the stage)troupe is the preferred spelling{a circus troupe
}Analogous words: *set, circle, coterie, clique: *association, society, club, order: *crowd, throng, mob, horde
New Dictionary of Synonyms. 2014.