# tribe

Pronunciation: say "TRYB" /tɹaɪb/

## Noun

1. An ethnic group larger than a band or clan but smaller than a nation, often forming the basis of shared identity.
   - Simple: A group of families and clans who share the same language, customs, and ancestors.
   - _The tribe traced its origins to a single founding family._
   - _Several neighboring tribes joined together to form a nation._
2. A socially cohesive group of people within a larger society, united by shared interests or identity.
   - Simple: A group of people who feel close because they share the same interests or beliefs.
   - _The startup felt less like a company and more like a tribe._
   - _Fans of the band consider themselves one big tribe with their own rituals._
3. A nation or people that constitutes or identifies as a tribe.
   - Simple: A whole nation or people that is organized as a single tribe.
   - _The tribe negotiated directly with the federal government._
   - _These tribes hold sovereign status under national law._
4. A class or group of things considered together as one kind.
   - Simple: A set of things that all belong together in the same kind of group.
   - _The museum displayed an entire tribe of antique clocks._
   - _Sedans, trucks, and vans all belong to the same tribe of road vehicles._
5. A derogatory term for a nation or people regarded as culturally primitive, as once said of some peoples in Africa, Australia, or the Americas. *(colloquial)*
   - Simple: An offensive word for a people thought of as primitive or uncivilized.
   - _An old textbook described the natives as a primitive tribe untouched by progress._
   - _Settlers wrote home about the savage tribes beyond the frontier._
6. In biological classification, a rank positioned between family and genus.
   - Simple: A group used by scientists to sort living things, ranked between family and genus.
   - _The botanist assigned the genus to a newly defined tribe._
   - _The family is divided into five tribes, each containing several genera._
7. In animal breeding, a family of animals that trace their descent through the female line back to one particular female ancestor.
   - Simple: A group of animals that all come from one female ancestor through their mothers.
   - _The breeder kept records of each tribe descended from his foundation mares._
   - _Two tribes of cattle on the ranch share a single ancestral dam._
8. A collective noun used for certain groups of animals, such as goats.
   - Simple: A group name for certain animals, such as goats or seabirds.
   - _A tribe of goats scrambled up the rocky slope._
   - _We watched a noisy tribe of monkeys move through the trees._
9. A group of apes that live and work together as one unit.
   - Simple: A group of apes that live and do things together.
   - _The researchers tracked a tribe of chimpanzees through the forest._
   - _Two tribes of apes competed for the same feeding ground._
10. A group of affiliated Mardi Gras Indians, the Black New Orleans maskers who parade in elaborate handmade suits.
   - Simple: A group of people who parade together as Mardi Gras Indians in New Orleans.
   - _The tribe spent all year sewing their beaded suits for Mardi Gras._
   - _Several tribes gathered uptown on Mardi Gras morning._

## Verb

11. To divide people or things into tribes or classes; to categorize them.
   - Simple: To sort people or things into separate groups or classes.
   - _Early naturalists tribe organisms according to shared traits._
   - _The committee tribed the proposals into three categories._

## Origin

The word comes from Latin "tribus," passing through Old French "tribu" and Middle English "tribe," "tribu." It is a doublet of "tribus."

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/tribe (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).