syndicate

noun

1. A group of individuals or companies formed to transact some specific business, or to promote a common interest; a self-coordinating group.

   “a gambling syndicate”

   “The worst deed ever alleged against the early sandalwood traders was that a number of natives were suffocated in a cave at Vaté, in the New Hebrides, by the smoke from a fire built at its mouth. But this was done by order of Maafu, who, on behalf of an Australian syndicate of highly-respectable merchants and church-members, was "bossing" an expedition in search of sandalwood through the New Hebrides.”

2. A group of individuals or companies formed to transact some specific business, or to promote a common interest; a self-coordinating group.

   “Held at the estate of Mafia boss Joseph Barbara in Apalachin, NY, the meeting called by [Vito] Genovese in November 1957 brought over 100 mobsters from around the country to cement his power over the national crime syndicate.”

3. A group of individuals or companies formed to transact some specific business, or to promote a common interest; a self-coordinating group.

   “In the mid-1880s, Charles W[addell] Chesnutt broke into print inauspiciously as one member of the stable of writers who supplied humorous sketches and mildly sentimental or didactic squibs for S[amuel] S[idney] McClure's newspaper syndicate.”

4. The office or jurisdiction of a syndic; a body or council of syndics.

   “The executive government of the University [of Madras] shall be vested in a syndicate, consisting of the Vice-Chancellor and six of the fellows, who shall be elected for one year by the several faculties, at the annual meetng of the senate, […]”

verb

1. (intransitive)To become a syndicate.

   “[H]e [John Guthrie McCallum] went to Los Angeles and set up a law practice. There, with three partners and a capitalization of $100,000, they syndicated under the name Palm Valley Land and Water Company in 1887.”

2. (transitive)To put under the control of a group acting as a unit.
3. (transitive)To release media content through a syndicate to be broadcast or published through multiple outlets.

   “[I]nternational television format exchanges are providing a customizable alternative to syndicating existing TV series in foreign markets. Sixteen countries around the world have adapted So You Think You Can Dance, a reality dance competition that originated in the United States. Format changes range from using local judges and contestants to incorporating local dance styles into the competition.”

   “With the success of The Oprah Winfrey Show and the national attention that Oprah [Winfrey] received from The Color Purple, [Jeffrey] Jacobs advised her that it was time to syndicate her show. Jacobs worked out a deal with the syndication company King World to distribute the show nationally. Two brothers, Roger and Michael King, ran King World. They syndicated the game shows Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy! and were looking for a new show to add to their list.”