out-group

American  

[out-groop] / ˈaʊtˌgrup /

noun

Sociology.

1. people outside one's own group, especially as considered to be inferior or alien; a group perceived as other than one's own.

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out-group British  

noun

1. sociol persons excluded from an in-group

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Etymology

Origin of out-group

First recorded in 1905–10; out- + group

Example Sentences

So if you decide to exclude someone from a paradigm, you have to change the rules and you have to define who is in the in-group and who is in the out-group.

From Slate • Mar. 3, 2025

There is always an in-group and an out-group.

From Scientific American • Sep. 28, 2023

As a result, tribalistic tendencies both reinforce allegiances among in-group members and increase animosity toward out-group members.

From Textbooks • Jun. 15, 2022

Cobbs: An opponent or an out-group that poses an acute threat to your in-group.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 13, 2022

This control by the in-group over its members makes for solidity and impenetrability in its relations with the out-group.

From Introduction to the Science of Sociology by Park, Robert Ezra