brotherhood

/ˌbrʌðərˈhʊd/

/ˈbrʌðəhʊd/

Other forms: brotherhoods

The relationship between a boy or man and his male siblings is known as brotherhood. Feeling that kind of connection with other people, even if you're not related, is also a kind of brotherhood.

This word is limited to the male gender; in families, brotherhood is the relationship between brothers. To include all of your siblings, you can use the term siblinghood. Members of fraternal organizations — clubs or societies of men with common interests or jobs — also feel a sense of brotherhood. A more inclusive name, one that would allow for all genders, might be kinship, alliance, or association.

Definitions of brotherhood

1. noun

   the kinship relation between a male offspring and the siblings
   type of:

   family relationship, kinship, relationship

   (anthropology) relatedness or connection by blood or marriage or adoption
2. noun

   the feeling that men should treat one another like brothers
   type of:

   friendliness

   a feeling of liking for another person; enjoyment in their company
3. noun

   people engaged in a particular occupation
   synonyms: fraternity, sodality

   type of:

   class, social class, socio-economic class, stratum

   people having the same social, economic, or educational status
4. noun

   an organization of employees formed to bargain with the employer
   synonyms: labor union, trade union, trades union, union

   types:

   industrial union, vertical union

   a labor union that admits all workers in a given industry irrespective of their craft

   craft union

   a labor union whose membership is restricted to workers in a particular craft

   company union

   a union of workers for a single company; a union not affiliated with a larger union

   I.W.W., IWW, Industrial Workers of the World

   a former international labor union and radical labor movement in the United States; founded in Chicago in 1905 and dedicated to the overthrow of capitalism; its membership declined after World War I

   Teamsters Union

   an industrial union of truck drivers and chauffeurs and warehouse workers

   United Mine Workers, United Mine Workers of America

   an industrial union of mine workers in North America

   type of:

   organisation, organization

   a group of people who work together