tribal
- 01 B2 Upper Intermediate
adj.relating to a group of people who share the same language, history, and customs.
adj.relating to or characteristic of a tribe or tribes as a social unit.
Simple“The museum has a large collection of tribal masks from West Africa.”
In context“The researchers spent years documenting the tribal customs and oral histories of the indigenous communities in the Amazon basin.”
- 02 C1 Advanced
adj.showing very strong loyalty to your own group, especially in politics.
adj.characterized by strong, often unquestioning loyalty to one's own social or political group.
Simple“Modern politics can feel very tribal when people refuse to listen to other views.”
In context“The rise of social media has intensified tribal divisions, making it increasingly difficult for citizens to find common ground on national issues.”
- 03 B2 Upper Intermediate
adj.using patterns or styles that look like traditional art from indigenous people.
adj.incorporating aesthetic designs or motifs associated with indigenous or traditional cultures.
Simple“He decided to get a tribal tattoo on his upper arm.”
In context“The fashion designer's latest collection features bold tribal patterns inspired by traditional textiles from the South Pacific.”
SynonymsAntonyms - 04 C1 Advanced
n.a person who belongs to a tribe.
n.a member of a tribe, particularly used in the context of the indigenous peoples of India.
Simple“The government is working on new laws to protect the land of the tribals.”
In context“The conference brought together several tribals from the northeastern states to discuss the preservation of their linguistic heritage.”
UsageCommonly used in Indian English to refer to members of Scheduled Tribes.
Synonymstribesperson
“Kirkham says younger fans are actually "less rigid or tribal than they used to be" and boast a "more encyclopaedic knowledge" developed through video games - including EA Sports FC or Football Manager.”
“McEvoy documented the last years of the fiercely tribal nature of British youth culture before it was flattened out by the internet, as streaming homogenised music tastes.”
From Latin tribālis. By surface analysis, tribe + -al, first attested in the 1630s. The specific adjectival sense under the defunct theory of recapitulation derives from tribal history as an overly literal learned borrowing from German Stammesgeschichte; ordinarily, Stamm would only be translated as tribe when used in its ethnographic sense.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.