noun (plural -nies) see: wheel
Date: 14th century
1. a body of people living in a new territory but retaining ties with the parent state, the territory inhabited by such a body, a distinguishable localized population within a species ,
3. a circumscribed mass of microorganisms usually growing in or on a solid medium, the aggregation of zooids of a compound animal,
4. a group of individuals or things with common characteristics or interests situated in close association , the section occupied by such a group, a group of persons institutionalized away from others