Camaraderie and comradery are alternate spellings of the same word. They both refer to the spirit of goodwill and fellowship that exists between friends. They are used to characterize the easy familiarity between those who know each other well. Both words derive from the French word camarade. The first know use of the word is listed as 1840. Camaraderie is by far the more frequent spelling,
. appearing in Google searches approximately four times more often than comradery. "Comaraderie" is not a word, however. It is not found in any major dictionary.Camaraderie is often used to describe the bond that forms between soldiers during war and athletes on the field of play. It is a theme of such novels as "All Quiet on the Western Front," by Erich Maria Remarque which describes German soldiers experience during World War I, "Cannery Row," John Steinbeck's novel about the experience of living among the sardine fisheries in Monterey during the Great Depression and "The Canterbury Tales," by Geoffrey Chaucer which chronicles the journey of a group of pilgrims traveling from Southwark to the shrine of Saint Thomas Becket at Canterbury Cathedral. In an article about the Vietnam War, Stanley Kauffmann of the New Republic wrote, "It is about the camaraderie of troops bound for Vietnam who as their leader warns, have one another and nothing but one another when they fall into hell."Thesaurus.com lists the synonyms of the word camaraderie as cheer, companionability, companionship, comradeship, conviviality, esprit de corps, fellowship, gregariousness, intimacy, jollity, sociability and togetherness. The antonyms are listed as bad blood, dislike and hate. Consider using the words camaraderie or comradery when describing the relationship between close friends, soldiers and athletes. "The soldiers developed a camaraderie during their tour of duty in Iraq." is an example using the word in a sentence.More reference links: http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/camaraderie?show=0&t=1320297929 http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/camaraderie?__utma=1.1741343128.1318379689.1320112957.1320297801.3&__utmb=1.1.10.1320297801&__utmc=1&__utmx=-&__utmz=1.1320297801.3.2.utmcsr=google|utmccn=(organic)|utmcmd=organic|utmctr=(not%20provided)&__utmv=-&__utmk=231276191