as·so·ci·a·tion  (-ss-shn, -sh-)

n.

1. The act of associating or the state of being associated.

2. An organized body of people who have an interest, activity, or purpose in common; a society.

3.

a. A mental connection or relation between thoughts, feelings, ideas, or sensations.

b. A remembered or imagined feeling, emotion, idea, or sensation linked to a person, object, or idea.

4. Chemistry Any of various processes of combination, such as hydration, solvation, or complex-ion formation, depending on relatively weak chemical bonding.

5. Ecology A large number of organisms in a specific geographic area constituting a community with one or two dominant species.