in-group

American  

[in-groop] / ˈɪnˌgrup /

Or ingroup

noun

Sociology.

1. a group of people sharing similar interests and attitudes, producing feelings of solidarity, community, and exclusivity.

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in-group British  

noun

1. sociol a highly cohesive and relatively closed social group characterized by the preferential treatment reserved for its members and the strength of loyalty between them Compare out-group

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Etymology

Origin of in-group

First recorded in 1905–10; in- ¹ + group

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

in-group

“An autocracy needs to create an in-group versus an out-group,” Corrales explained.

From Slate ● Jan. 15, 2026

White women like Good are not just dissenters within the racial in-group, however, they are proof that the entire white nationalist story about inheritance and destiny is unstable.

From Salon ● Jan. 14, 2026

Their goodwill is awkward, as it must be when an in-group member tries to commiserate with “the other,” but it is, nonetheless, sympathy, which is to say concern.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 21, 2025

This suggests that rivalry strengthens in-group bonds and reinforces social identity.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 11, 2025

What is lacking is an authority which can impose commands on the in-group and extrude blood revenge from it.

From Folkways A Study of the Sociological Importance of Usages, Manners, Customs, Mores, and Morals by William Graham Sumner

Related Words

• camp
• class
• clique
• club
• company
• crowd
• fraternity
• party
• ring
• school
• society