cliquish

[ klee-kish, klik-ish ]

/ ˈkli kɪʃ, ˈklɪk ɪʃ /

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See synonyms for cliquish on Thesaurus.com

adjective

associating exclusively with the members of one's own clique; clannish.

tending to divide into cliques: a cliquish neighborhood.

of, relating to, or characteristic of a clique: narrow, cliquish notions about art.

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His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Origin of cliquish

First recorded in 1850–55; clique + -ish¹

OTHER WORDS FROM cliquish

cli·quish·ly, adverbcli·quish·ness, noun

Words nearby cliquish

clipsheet, clip someone's wings, clipt, clique, cliquey, cliquish, clishmaclaver, clisis, Clisthenes, clistocarpous, clistothecium

How to use cliquish in a sentence

It’s a very cliquish environment and everybody kind of knows everybody.
Musical adventurer Rufus Wainwright returns to touring, plays D.C. Sept. 28|Joey DiGuglielmo|September 16, 2021|Washington Blade
They set up a society that feels like high school on speed—oppressive and cliquish, only way more so.
‘The Bone Season’ Could Be the Next ‘Hunger Games,’ But Is It Any Good?|Leila Sales|August 21, 2013|DAILY BEAST
But I would rather see the inevitable mistakes made by a democratic rather than a cliquish system of voting.
The Oscars' Foreign Language Flop|Stephen Farber|February 22, 2011|DAILY BEAST
Any system, in fact, which involves “double election” tends to make the body concerned hidebound and cliquish.
Practical Politics; or, the Liberalism of To-day|Alfred Farthing Robbins