clan

American  

[klan] / klæn /

noun

1. a group of families or households, as among the Scottish Highlanders, the heads of which claim descent from a common ancestor.

   the Mackenzie clan.

2. a group of people of common descent; family.

   Our whole clan got together for Thanksgiving.

3. a group of people, as a clique, set, society, or party, especially as united by some common trait, characteristic, or interest.

   a clan of actors and directors.

4. Anthropology.

   1. the principal social unit of tribal organization, in which descent is reckoned exclusively in either the paternal or the maternal line.

   2. a group of people regarded as being descended from a common ancestor.

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clan British  

/ klæn /

noun

1. a group of people interrelated by ancestry or marriage

2. a group of families with a common surname and a common ancestor, acknowledging the same leader, esp among the Scots and the Irish

3. a group of people united by common characteristics, aims, or interests

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Other Word Forms

• clanless adjective
• interclan adjective
• subclan noun

Etymology

Origin of clan

1375–1425; late Middle English ( Scots ) < Scots Gaelic clann < Old Irish cland offspring < Latin planta scion, plant, perhaps directly < British Celtic; compare Welsh plant children

Explanation

A clan is an extended family. Your clan might include your parents and siblings, but also your cousins and second cousins, aunts and uncles, and grandparents. Families that are related to each other, whether through marriage or as distant cousins, are members of the same clan. If you get together with a big family group every summer, you can say you vacation with your clan. In Scotland, a person's clan has a specific name, like "clan MacLachlan." The word comes from the Gaelic clann, "family" or "offspring," with the Latin root planta, "offshoot."

Example Sentences

That complicates counter-measures by the state, which could be seen as an attack on the clan as a whole.

From Barron's • Apr. 28, 2026

Nia Long, who stepped into the shoes of Katherine -- Michael's mother and close ally -- remarked that, in a male-dominated world, the women of the clan "set the baseline for how the family moved."

From Barron's • Apr. 21, 2026

Police last month detained 16 people allegedly linked to the Mazzarella clan on charges of cyber fraud.

From BBC • Apr. 4, 2026

In the late 1980s he began making visits to Fort Pierce, where Mr. McDonough got to know the larger Stewart clan, as well as many of the musician’s bandmates and running buddies.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 27, 2026

“Okay. Your clan uncle is a hataalii, a medicine man. He’ll know what we need to do.”

From "Healer of the Water Monster" by Brian Young

Related Words

• band
• faction
• gang
• mob
• sect
• society
• tribe