clannish

adjective

clan·​nish ˈkla-nish How to pronounce clannish (audio)
1
: of or relating to a clan
clannish traditions
2
: tending to associate only with a select group of similar background or status
a clannish community
clannishly adverb
clannishness noun

Examples of clannish in a Sentence

The college faculty can be pretty clannish, so it's difficult to be an outsider there. a clannish family that can be rather cool to outsiders
Recent Examples on the Web The model relies on a dramatic shift in relations among officers and prisoners, two historically warring factions in a system built on clannish gamesmanship for survival. Tribune News Service, The Mercury News, 29 July 2024 In Afghanistan, legitimate authority has traditionally been highly localized, a product of consensus rather than brute force, and firmly anchored in tribal, clannish, and kinship structures. Jonah Blank, Foreign Affairs, 19 Aug. 2011 The most successful of those managers have carved out a niche catering to the valley’s famously clannish billionaire elites. James McClain, Robb Report, 6 Dec. 2023 There are a broad spectrum of other possible explanations for the disparate outcomes Boegeman cites, including religious differences, geographic differences, even — gasp — the clannish propensity of ethnic groups to band together and create — or retain — their unique cultural traditions. Star Tribune, 19 July 2021 See all Example Sentences for clannish 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'clannish.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1776, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of clannish was in 1776

Dictionary Entries Near clannish

Cite this Entry

“Clannish.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/clannish. Accessed 31 Oct. 2024.

Kids Definition

clannish

adjective
clan·​nish ˈklan-ish How to pronounce clannish (audio)
: tending to associate only with a group of persons like oneself
clannishness noun

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