From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.44 [gcide]:
Convention \Con*ven"tion\, noun [L. conventio: cf. F. convention. See {Convene}, verb (used without an object)]
1. The act of coming together; the state of being together; union; coalition.
The conventions or associations of several particles of matter into bodies of any certain denomination. --Boyle.
2. General agreement or concurrence; arbitrary custom; usage; conventionality.
There are thousands now Such women, but convention beats them down. --Tennyson.
3. A meeting or an assembly of persons, esp. of delegates or representatives, to accomplish some specific object, -- civil, social, political, or ecclesiastical.
He set himself to the making of good laws in a grand convention of his nobles. --Sir R. Baker.
A convention of delegates from all the States, to meet in Philadelphia, for the sole and express purpose of reserving the federal system, and correcting its defects. --W. Irving.
4. (Eng. Hist) An extraordinary assembly of the parkiament or estates of the realm, held without the king's writ, -- as the assembly which restored Charles II. to the throne, and that which declared the throne to be abdicated by James II.
Our gratitude is due . . . to the Long Parliament, to the Convention, and to William of Orange. --Macaulay.
5. An agreement or contract less formal than, or preliminary to, a treaty; an informal compact, as between commanders of armies in respect to suspension of hostilities, or between states; also, a formal agreement between governments or sovereign powers; as, a postal convention between two governments.
This convention, I think from my soul, is nothing but a stipulation for national ignominy; a truce without a suspension of hostilities. --Ld. Chatham.
The convention with the State of Georgia has been ratified by their Legislature. --T. Jefferson.
From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:
noun
1: a large formal assembly; "political convention"
2: something regarded as a normative example; "the convention of not naming the main character"; "violence is the rule not the exception"; "his formula for impressing visitors" [syn: {normal}, {pattern}, {rule}, {formula}]
3: (diplomacy) an international agreement
4: orthodoxy as a consequence of being conventional [syn: {conventionality}, {conventionalism}] [ant: {unconventionality}]
5: the act of convening [syn: {convening}]
From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 [moby-thes]:
248 Moby Thesaurus words for "convention": Council of Nicaea, Council of Trent, Lateran Council, NATO, SEATO, Vatican Council, accord, agreement, alliance, amenities, arrangement, assemblee, assembly, assignation, at home, audience, ball, bargain, bargaining, bargaining session, bienseance, binding agreement, bon ton, bond, brawl, canon, capitulation, cartel, caucus, chapter, civilities, civility, classis, code, collective agreement, colloquium, comity, commandment, commission, committee, compact, conciliarism, conclave, concord, concordat, concourse, confab, confabulation, conference, conformity, confrontation, congregation, congress, consistory, consortium, constitutional convention, consuetude, consultation, contract, convenance, conventicle, conventional usage, conventionalism, conventionality, convocation, correctness, council, council fire, council of war, county convention, courtliness, covenant, covenant of salt, custom, dance, date, deal, decencies, decency, decorousness, decorum, dicker, dictum, diet, diocesan conference, diplomatic code, discussion, ecclesiastical council, ecumenical council, eisteddfod, elegance, elegancies, employment contract, entente, entente cordiale, established way, etiquette, exchange of views, exquisite manners, eyeball-to-eyeball encounter, fashion, festivity, fete, folkway, forgathering, form, formal agreement, formalities, formality, formula, forum, gathering, general principle, get-together, golden rule, good form, good manners, guideline, guiding principle, haute couture, high fashion, high-level talk, housewarming, huddle, imperative, interchange of views, international agreement, interview, ironclad agreement, law, league, legal agreement, legal contract, levee, manner, manners, maxim, meet, meeting, mitzvah, mode, moral, mores, mutual agreement, mutual-defense treaty, national convention, natural politeness, negotiations, news conference, nominating convention, nonaggression pact, norm, observance, ordinance, pact, paction, palaver, panel, parley, parochial church council, parochial council, party, plenary council, plenum, point of etiquette, politeness, politesse, political convention, pourparler, powwow, practice, praxis, precept, preliminary convention, presbytery, prescription, press conference, prevailing taste, principium, principle, prom, promise, proper thing, proprieties, propriety, protocol, punctilio, quadrennial circus, quiet good manners, quorum, rally, reception, regulation, rendezvous, ritual, rubric, rule, rules of conduct, seance, seemliness, seminar, session, settled principle, shindig, sit-in, sitting, social code, social conduct, social convention, social graces, social procedures, social usage, soiree, standard, standard behavior, standard usage, standing custom, state convention, stipulation, stream of fashion, style, summit, summit conference, summitry, swim, symposium, synod, tenet, time-honored practice, tradition, transaction, treaty, trend, turnout, understanding, union contract, usage, use, valid contract, vestry, vogue, wage contract, way, what is done, wont, wonting, working principle, working rule
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Let's see what we can do if we put our heads together.
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