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   Tribe

   /trīb/

   

   noun

   • 1. a social division in a traditional society consisting of families or communities linked by social, economic, religious, or blood ties, with a common culture and dialect, typically having a recognized leader: "indigenous Indian tribes" Similar ethnic grouppeopleracenationfamilydynastyhouseclansepttechnical:gensarchaic:folk
   • ▪ (in ancient Rome) each of several political divisions, originally three, later thirty, ultimately thirty-five.
   • ▪ a distinctive or close-knit group: derogatory "she made a stand against the social codes of her English middle-class tribe" Similar groupcrowdgangcompanybodybandhostbevypartypackarmyherdflockdrovehordemobinformal:bunchcrewgaggleposseload
   • ▪ a large number of people or animals: informal "tribes of children playing under the watchful eyes of nurses"
   • 2. a taxonomic category that ranks above genus and below family or subfamily, usually ending in -ini (in zoology) or -eae (in botany).

   Word Origin Middle English: from Old French tribu or Latin tribus (singular and plural); perhaps related to tri- ‘three’ and referring to the three divisions of the early people of Rome.

   Scrabble Points: 7

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