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Tribe

//tɹaɪb// name, noun, verb, slang

Definitions

Proper Noun
  1. 1
    A surname.
Noun
  1. 1
    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"

  2. 2
    group of people related by blood or marriage wordnet
  3. 3
    A tribal nation or people.

    "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."

  4. 4
    (biology) a taxonomic category between a genus and a subfamily wordnet
  5. 5
    A nation or people considered culturally primitive, as may be the case in Africa, Australia or Native America. derogatory, informal
Show 9 more definitions
  1. 6
    a federation (as of American Indians) wordnet
  2. 7
    A socially cohesive group of people within a society.

    "Near-synonyms: nation; ingroup"

  3. 8
    a social division of (usually preliterate) people wordnet
  4. 9
    A class or group of things.

    "In 1968, estimates of the number of active reprint publishers ranged from about 20 to 100 publishers. The fact that almost 300 U.S. reprint publishers have been identified is evidence that the reprint tribe continues to increase."

  5. 10
    A group of apes who live and work together.
  6. 11
    A hierarchical rank between family and genus.

    "The tempo of evolution in South American hamsters was very rapid – in the course of the Pliocene and Anthropocene 40 genera were formed here, at which time a series of them attained the level of tribe and subtribe (Oxymycteri, Phyllotiini, Ichthyomyini)."

  7. 12
    A group of affiliated Mardi Gras Indians.
  8. 13
    The collective noun for various animals.
  9. 14
    A family of animals descended from some particular female progenitor, through the female line.

    "the Duchess tribe of shorthorns"

Verb
  1. 1
    To distribute into tribes or classes; to categorize. transitive

    "1696-1699, William Nicolson, English Historical Library Our fowl, fish, and quadruped are well tribed."

Etymology

Etymology 1

PIE word *tréyes From Middle English tribe, tribu, from Old French tribu, from Latin tribus. Doublet of tribus.

Etymology 2

PIE word *tréyes From Middle English tribe, tribu, from Old French tribu, from Latin tribus. Doublet of tribus.

Etymology 3

Southern English surname of uncertain origin. Perhaps related to Latin tribus.

See also for "tribe"

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