Co-opt (Verb)
Meaning 1
Choose or elect as a fellow member or colleague; "The church members co-opted individuals from similar backgrounds to replenish the congregation".
Classification
Verbs of political and social activities and events.
Examples
- The community group co-opted several local business owners to join their committee and provide valuable insights on economic development.
- The company board of directors co-opted an industry expert as their new CEO to lead the company's expansion plans.
- The university research team co-opted visiting scholars from abroad to collaborate on their projects.
- The local government co-opted members of environmental organizations to help draft their new conservation policies.
- The artist co-opted several musicians from different genres to collaborate on her debut album.
Related Words
Meaning 2
Neutralize or win over through assimilation into an established group; "We co-opted the independent minority tribes by pulling them into the Northern Alliance".
Classification
Verbs of political and social activities and events.
Examples
- The corporation managed to co-opt several environmental groups by donating to their causes and hiring their leaders as consultants.
- By recruiting a few influential revolutionaries, the government co-opted the uprising and turned its momentum into a reform movement.
- Over time, the activist group was co-opted by mainstream politicians who used its rhetoric to boost their own popularity.
- The billionaire co-opted the startup by investing heavily and putting several of his allies on the company's board of directors.
- The university co-opted the local arts scene by offering grants and funding to the most promising young artists.
Meaning 3
Appoint summarily or commandeer; "The army tried to co-opt peasants into civil defence groups".
Classification
Verbs of political and social activities and events.
Examples
- The rebel group attempted to co-opt local youth into their armed resistance against the government.
- The national authority plans to co-opt part-time security personnel from the neighboring districts to augment their numbers.
- They don't want to co-opt too many volunteers as this would mean more supplies and logistics.
- Under pressure from the international community, the government tried to co-opt tribal leaders in a bid to end the conflict peacefully.
- Instead of forming new agencies, the existing agencies tried to co-opt technology experts to fill in gaps in their digital forensics capabilities.
Hypernyms
Related Words
Meaning 4
Take or assume for one's own use; "He co-opted the criticism and embraced it".
Classification
Verbs of buying, selling, owning.
Examples
- The activist co-opted the politician's slogan and used it to fuel her own campaign against corruption.
- The artist co-opted the street art style of graffiti and incorporated it into her gallery work.
- The company co-opted the independent developer's idea and launched it as their own product.
- The politician co-opted the criticism of her opponent and used it to launch a successful counter-attack.
- The activist co-opted the social media hashtag that was originally used against him and turned it into a rallying cry.