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/tɹaɪb/ · noun
(history, anthropology) An ethnic group larger than a band or clan (and which may contain clans) but smaller than a nation (and which in turn may constitute a nation with other tribes). The tribe is often the basis of ethnic identity..
the Twelve Tribes of Israel; Germanic tribes; Celtic tribes
The Formation of Kazakh Identity: From Tribe to Nation-state
If two persons bore the same name, […] ambiguity was avoided by […] indicating their place of origin, the name of the tribe or deme being added for persons of the same town […], and the name of the country or town for foreigners […].
There have been other encounters with uncontacted tribes in recent years. In February, a young man from an isolated Indigenous tribe in Brazil made brief contact with the outside world before returning to the Amazon rainforest.
This leaves for consideration of this group of small tribes, or subtribes, so far as mapped by the writer quoted, the Teule, Cazcan, and Tecuexe.
Near-synonyms: nation; ingroup
She found her tribe among fellow cross-stitchers.
The thought of spending a year in close company with twitchers chilled me to the core. Not that I have anything against them, I am terribly fond of the members of the tribe, it is just that basically, they are a bunch of obsessive freaks.
Use tribe when its meaning, tone and grammar fit the full sentence. A synonym is not always a direct replacement.
Tribe means (history, anthropology) An ethnic group larger than a band or clan (and which may contain clans) but smaller than a nation (and which in turn may constitute a nation with other tribes). The tribe is often the basis of ethnic identity..
Common synonyms include tribus, nation, ingroup, kin.
The opposite depends on the specific sense.
the Twelve Tribes of Israel; Germanic tribes; Celtic tribes
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