association-n; 7 Senses

Sense Number 1: a formal organization of people or groups of people

Commentary: ASSOCIATION [+human] [+thing joined]

Examples:
He joined the Modern Language Association.
The association has placed a ban on homeowners painting their house extreme colors, such as black.
Associations with members over 100 people are required to register with the county.

Mappings:
WordNet 3.0 Sense Numbers: 1

Sense Number 2: the act of consorting with or joining with others; a social or business relationship

Commentary: ASSOCIATION[+event][+human_or_human-run_association][+relationship]

Examples:
You cannot be convicted of criminal guilt by mere association.
He was sorry to have to stop associating with the other members of the Equine Association.
The nation had close associations with England.

Mappings:
WordNet 3.0 Sense Numbers: 2, 5

Sense Number 3: the state of being connected together as in memory, imagery or imagination

Commentary: ASSOCIATION[+event][+human][+memory_connection]

Examples:
His association of his father with being beaten was too strong to break.
a baby's first association of love with its mother defines its ability to keep and maintain relationships lifelong.
Picasso's association of the color blue to the death of his friend defined his blue period.

Mappings:
WordNet 3.0 Sense Numbers: 3

Sense Number 4: the process of bringing ideas or events together in memory or imagination with an expectation of learning; conditioning as a form of learning by association.

Commentary: ASSOCIATION[+animate][+learning_method] [+thing(s)_learned]

Examples:
The Pavlovian method is a prime example of learning by association.
When training a parrot to stop problem behaviours, trainers often find learning by association a valuable tool.
The boy easily attributed the correct French words to the pictures, as he had learned vocabulary by association.

Mappings:
WordNet 3.0 Sense Numbers: 4

Sense Number 5: a relation resulting from interaction or dependence

Commentary: ASSOCIATION[+inanimate][+animate][+thing_associated]

Examples:
Flints were found in association with the prehistoric remains of the bear.
The host is not always injured by association with a parasite.

Mappings:
WordNet 3.0 Sense Numbers: 6

Sense Number 6: CHEMISTRY: any process of combination ,especially in solution, that depends on relatively weak chemical bonding

Commentary: ASSOCIATION[+inanimate][+animate][+thing_associated]

Examples:
Hemoglobin-oxygen association curves of human erythrocytes were measured...

Mappings:
WordNet 3.0 Sense Numbers: 7

Sense Number 7: ECOLOGY:a group of organisms (plants and animals) that live together in a certain geographical region and constitute a community with a few dominant species.

Commentary: ASSOCIATION[+animate][+non-human][+ecological relationship]

Examples:
the psittacine association in the Amazon Vaupes-basin remains threatened throughout due to hunting practices.

Mappings:
WordNet 3.0 Sense Numbers: 8