tradition
Americannoun
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the handing down of statements, beliefs, legends, customs, information, etc., from generation to generation, especially by word of mouth or by practice.
a story that has come down to us by popular tradition.
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something that is handed down.
the traditions of the American South.
- Synonyms:
- usage, convention, habit, practice, custom
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a long-established or inherited way of thinking or acting.
The rebellious students wanted to break with tradition.
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a continuing pattern of culture beliefs or practices.
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a customary or characteristic method or manner.
The winner took a victory lap in the usual track tradition.
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Theology.
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(among Jews) body of laws and doctrines, or any one of them, held to have been received from Moses and originally handed down orally from generation to generation.
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(among Christians) a body of teachings, or any one of them, held to have been delivered by Christ and His apostles but not originally committed to writing.
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(among Muslims) a hadith.
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Law. an act of handing over something to another, especially in a formal legal manner; delivery; transfer.
noun
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the handing down from generation to generation of the same customs, beliefs, etc, esp by word of mouth
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the body of customs, thought, practices, etc, belonging to a particular country, people, family, or institution over a relatively long period
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a specific custom or practice of long standing
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Christianity a doctrine or body of doctrines regarded as having been established by Christ or the apostles though not contained in Scripture
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(often capital) Judaism a body of laws regarded as having been handed down from Moses orally and only committed to writing in the 2nd century ad
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the beliefs and customs of Islam supplementing the Koran, esp as embodied in the Sunna
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law Roman law Scots law the act of formally transferring ownership of movable property; delivery
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of tradition
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English tradicion, from Old French, from Latin trāditiōn- (stem of trāditiō ) “a handing over or down, transfer,” equivalent to trādit(us), past participle of trādere “to give over, impart, surrender, betray” ( trā-, variant of trāns- trans- + -ditus, combining form of datus “given”; see date 1) + -iōn- -ion
Explanation
Traditions are longstanding customs and practices. It might be a family tradition to open Christmas presents on Christmas Eve, started because your parents were too impatient to wait. The noun tradition has Latin roots in the word tradere, which means hand over or hand down. So think of a tradition as something that is handed down from one generation to another. Fireworks on the Fourth of July are a national tradition, and playing your school's fight song at the start of the football game is probably a longstanding tradition designed to get the fans excited for the game.
Vocabulary lists containing tradition
Tier 2 Words for the SBAC ELA Items
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It's All in the Family
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It's Lit: Hanukkah Words
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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.
These are only the most recent controversial moves from Weiss, who’s set on remaking the institution long defined by tradition.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 5, 2026
So is the tradition of cod and chips in jeopardy?
From BBC • Jun. 5, 2026
It also draws on the cognitive science tradition to identify a plausible list of indicators of consciousness based on the structure of information processing.
From Science Daily • Jun. 5, 2026
This Pride Month, we are calling on Christian communities to reckon with what their tradition actually says.
From Salon • Jun. 5, 2026
He established a tradition that after a successful mission, each squadron would fly home together at a low height in an air-show formation.
From "A Thousand Sisters" by Elizabeth Wein
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.
