congress

See also: Congress

English

Etymology

From Latin congress(um), the past participle of congredior (“I go, come together”), itself from con- + gradior (“I go, step”). The verb is from the noun.

Compare typologically coven, convent, convention, several steps omitting from con- + veniō, Russian сход (sxod), схо́дка (sxódka), akin to сходи́ться (sxodítʹsja), ходи́ть (xodítʹ). Also compare Czech sjezd, Russian съезд (sʺjezd), akin to съезжа́ться (sʺjezžátʹsja), е́здить (jézditʹ). Also compare conference.

Pronunciation

• (noun:)
  • (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈkɑŋɡɹəs/, /-ɹɛs/
  • (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈkɒŋˌɡɹɛs/

  • Audio (US):

    (file)

• (verb:)
  • IPA^(key): /kənˈɡɹɛs/, /kəŋˈɡɹɛs/
  • Rhymes: -ɛs

Noun

congress (countable and uncountable, plural congresses)

1. (archaic) A coming together of two or more people; a meeting.
   • 1624, Democritus Junior [pseudonym; Robert Burton], The Anatomy of Melancholy: […], 2nd edition, Oxford, Oxfordshire: […] John Lichfield and James Short, for Henry Cripps, →OCLC:
     , New York Review of Books, 2001, p.48:

     After some little repast, he went to see Democritus […]. The multitude stood gazing round about to see the congress.

2. A formal gathering or assembly; a conference held to discuss or decide on a specific question.
3. (often capitalized) A legislative body of a state, originally the bicameral legislature of the United States of America.

   Synonyms: assembly, legislature, parliament

4. An association, especially one consisting of other associations or representatives of interest groups.

   Synonym: federation

   The National Congress of American Indians

5. (dated) Coitus; sexual intercourse.

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:sexual intercourse

   • 1927, Havelock Ellis, Studies in the Psychology of Sex, Volume 1 (of 6)‎^[1]:

     Welsh ponies, I learn from a man who has had much experience with these animals, habitually produce erections and emissions in their stalls; they do not bring their hind quarters up during this process, and they close their eyes, which does not take place when they have congress with mares.

   • 1985, Cormac McCarthy, chapter 1, in Blood Meridian […] , →OCLC:

     Not three weeks before this he was run out of Fort Smith Arkansas for having congress with a goat. Yes lady, that is what I said. Goat.

6. (countable, collective) A group of baboons; the collective noun for baboons.
   • 1966, Philip José Farmer, “Riverworld”, in Down in the Black Gang and Others‎^[2], Garden City, NY: Nelson Doubleday, published 1971, page 79:

     […] the council hall stank like a congress of baboons.

   • 2013, Dick Hrebik, Walter Goes to War—WWII, Rolling Meadows, IL: Windy City Publishers, Chapter 7, p. 133,^[3]

     Saw a congress of baboons of all sizes making their way to a mountaintop to spend the night on the rocks and trees there.

Derived terms

• congresscritter
• congressfolk
• congressfolks
• congress gaiter, congress shoe
• congress grass
• congressional, congressionally
• congressive
• congressjerk
• congressman
• Congress Party
• congressperson
• congresswoman
• marital congress
• sexual congress
• suspended congress
• uncongressed

Translations

legislative body

• Albanian: kongres (sq) m
• Amharic: ምክር ቤት (məkr bet)
• Arabic: (US Congress) كُونْجْرِس m (kōngris, kungris), كُونْغْرِس m (kunḡris)

  Hijazi Arabic: كُونْقْرِس m (kōngris)

• Armenian: կոնգրես (hy) (kongres)
• Azerbaijani: konqres
• Belarusian: кангрэ́с m (kanhrés) з'е́зд m (zʺjézd)'
• Bengali: কংগ্রেস (bn) (koṅgres)
• Bulgarian: конгре́с (bg) m (kongrés)
• Burmese: ကွန်ဂရက် (my) (kwan-ga.rak)
• Catalan: congrés (ca) m
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 代表大會 / 代表大会 (dàibiǎo dàhuì), 國會 / 国会 (zh) (guóhuì)

• Czech: kongres (cs) m
• Danish: kongres (da) c
• Dutch: congres (nl) n
• Estonian: kongress
• Finnish: kongressi (fi), eduskunta (fi)
• French: congrès (fr) m
• Georgian: კონგრესი (ḳongresi)
• German: Kongress (de) m
• Greek: κογκρέσο (el) n (kogkréso)
• Hausa: majalisa (ha)
• Hebrew: קוֹנְגְּרֶס m (kongrés)
• Hindi: कांग्रेस (hi) f (kāṅgres)
• Hungarian: kongresszus (hu)
• Icelandic: þing (is) n
• Indonesian: kongres (id)
• Irish: comhdháil f
• Italian: congresso (it) m
• Japanese: 議会 (ja) (ぎかい, gikai), 国会 (ja) (こっかい, kokkai)
• Kazakh: конгресс (koñress)
• Khmer: រដ្ឋសភា (km) (rŏətthaʼsaʼphiə)
• Korean: 의회(議會) (ko) (uihoe)
• Kurdish:

  Central Kurdish: کۆنگرا (kongra)

  Northern Kurdish: kongre (ku)

• Kyrgyz: конгресс (ky) (kongress)
• Lao: ລັດຖະສະພາ (lat tha sa phā), ຣັຖສະພາ (rat sa phā)
• Latvian: kongress m
• Lithuanian: kongresas m
• Macedonian: конгрес m (kongres)
• Malay: kongres
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: kongress (no) m

  Nynorsk: kongress m

• Pashto: کانګرس m (kāngres)
• Persian:

  Dari: کَانْگْرِس (kāngris)

  Iranian Persian: کُنْگْرِه (kongre)

• Polish: kongres (pl) m
• Portuguese: congresso (pt) m
• Romanian: congres (ro) n
• Russian: конгре́сс (ru) m (kongréss), съе́зд (ru) m (sʺjézd)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: ко̀нгрес m

  Roman: kòngres (sh) m

• Slovak: kongres m
• Slovene: kongres (sl) m
• Spanish: congreso (es) m
• Swahili: kongresi
• Swedish: kongress (sv) c
• Tagalog: kongreso (tl), batasang-bansa
• Tajik: конгресс (kongress)
• Thai: รัฐสภา (th) (rát-tà-sà-paa)
• Turkish: kongre (tr)
• Turkmen: kongress
• Ukrainian: конгре́с (uk) m (konhrés), зї́зд (uk) m (zjízd)
• Urdu: کان٘گْریس f (kāṅgres)
• Uzbek: kongress (uz)
• Vietnamese: quốc hội (vi) (國會)
• Yiddish: קאָנגרעס m (kongres)
• Zulu: ukhongolose class 1a/2a

conference

• Arabic: مُؤْتَمَر m (muʔtamar), اِجْتِمَاع (ar) m (ijtimāʕ)
• Armenian: համագումար (hy) (hamagumar), կոնգրես (hy) (kongres)
• Azerbaijani: qurultay (az)
• Basque: batzar
• Belarusian: з'езд m (zʺjezd)
• Bulgarian: конгре́с (bg) m (kongrés), конфере́нция (bg) f (konferéncija)
• Burmese: ကွန်ဂရက် (my) (kwan-ga.rak)
• Catalan: congrés (ca) m
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 大會 / 大会 (zh) (dàhuì)

• Czech: kongres (cs) m, sjezd (cs) m
• Dutch: congres (nl) n, conferentie (nl)
• Esperanto: kongreso
• Finnish: kongressi (fi)
• French: congrès (fr) m
• Georgian: ყრილობა (q̇riloba), კონგრესი (ḳongresi)
• German: Kongress (de) m, Tagung (de) f
• Greek: συνέδριο (el) n (synédrio)
• Hebrew: כֶּנֶס (he) m (kénes)
• Hungarian: kongresszus (hu)
• Japanese: 会議 (ja) (かいぎ, kaigi)
• Kazakh: құрылтай (qūryltai)
• Korean: 대회(大會) (ko) (daehoe), 회의(會議) (ko) (hoe'ui)
• Kurdish:

  Central Kurdish: کۆنگرا (kongra)

  Northern Kurdish: kongre (ku)

• Macedonian: конгрес m (kongres)
• Mongolian:

  Cyrillic: их хурал (ix xural), хурал (mn) (xural)

• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: kongress (no) m

  Nynorsk: kongress m

• Pashto: کنفرانس m (kanfarāns)
• Persian:

  Iranian Persian: کُنْفِرانْس (konferâns), هَمایِش (hamâyeš)

• Polish: kongres (pl) m
• Portuguese: congresso (pt) m
• Romanian: congres (ro) n
• Russian: конгре́сс (ru) m (kongréss), съезд (ru) m (sʺjezd), конфере́нция (ru) f (konferéncija)
• Scottish Gaelic: còmhdhail f
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: ко̀нгрес m

  Roman: kòngres (sh) m

• Slovak: zjazd m
• Slovene: kongres (sl) m
• Spanish: congreso (es) m
• Swedish: kongress (sv) c
• Tagalog: kongreso (tl)
• Tatar: корылтай (tt) (qorıltay)
• Turkish: konferans (tr)
• Turkmen: gurultaý
• Ukrainian: конгре́с (uk) m (konhrés), зї́зд (uk) m (zjízd)
• Uzbek: qurultoy (uz), syezd
• Vietnamese: đại hội (vi) (大會)
• Yiddish: קאָנגרעס m (kongres)

association

• Finnish: liitto (fi), keskusliitto
• Japanese: 会議 (ja) (かいぎ, kaigi)
• Korean: 협의회(協議會) (hyeobuihoe), 연합회(聯合會) (yeonhaphoe), 련합회(聯合會) (ryeonhaphoe) (North Korea)
• Polish: kongres (pl) m
• Romanian: congres (ro) n, partid (ro) n
• Ukrainian: конґрес m (kongres)

sexual intercourse — see sexual intercourse

Verb

congress (third-person singular simple present congresses, present participle congressing, simple past and past participle congressed)

1. (intransitive) To assemble together.
2. To meet in a congress.