conglomerate

Concise Oxford English Dictionary © 2008 Oxford University Press:
conglomerate

▶noun /kənˈglɒm(ə)rət/ 

• 1 something consisting of a number of different and distinct things grouped together.

  ■ a large corporation formed by the merging of separate firms.

• 2 Geology a coarse-grained sedimentary rock composed of rounded fragments cemented together.

▶adjective /kənˈglɒm(ə)rət/ relating to a conglomerate. ▶verb /kənˈglɒməreɪt/ gather into or form a conglomerate.

– derivatives
conglomeration noun.

– origin ME: from L. conglomerat-, conglomerare, from con- ‘together’ + glomus, glomer- ‘ball’.