tribal
Americanadjective
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of, relating to, or characteristic of a tribe.
tribal customs in Indonesia.
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designating, characterized by, or relating to a strong sense of loyalty to one’s own tribe, party, or group.
Tribal politics can be divisive and counterproductive.
adjective
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of or denoting a tribe or tribes
tribal chiefs in northern Yemen
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displaying loyalty to a tribe, group, or tribal values
the tribal loyalties of Labour MPs
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of tribal
Explanation
Tribal things have something to do with a group or tribe, like Native Americans' tribal land, where certain tribes lived for thousands of years. You might have heard the term "tribal sovereignty" before — it's basically the legal right of indigenous or native people to govern themselves under certain conditions. In the United States, for example, tribal groups are recognized as "domestic dependent nations." Sometimes the adjective tribal is slightly derogatory, but only when it's used to mean "overly loyal to a group."
Vocabulary lists containing tribal
"Black Panther" Lingo
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Florida's B.E.S.T. Common Suffixes: -al, -ial
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TKAM excerpt
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
But for all their diverging allegiances, tribal relatives remained reluctant to kill one another.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 17, 2026
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.
From BBC ● Aug. 15, 2026
The program is open to applicants from small towns and cities, tribal communities and underrepresented groups.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2026
For tribal nations, this is an existential issue with wide-reaching implications.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026
The principal difference between them and tribal shamans is that modern lawyers tell far stranger tales.
From "Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind" by Yuval Noah Harari
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
