clan

noun

1
a
: a Celtic group especially in the Scottish Highlands comprising a number of households whose heads claim descent from a common ancestor
the MacDonald clan
b
: a group of people tracing descent from a common ancestor : family
The whole clan gets together for the holidays.
2
: a group united by a common interest or common characteristics
the country club clan

Examples of clan in a Sentence

The tribe is divided into clans. The whole clan gets together for the holidays.
Recent Examples on the Web By the time Apples Never Fall reaches its (surprising, if underwhelming) conclusion after seven hour-long episodes, its insularity has rendered the entire clan curiously flat. Angie Han, The Hollywood Reporter, 13 Mar. 2024 Members of the clan regularly attend performances of Schoenberg’s music in Los Angeles, delivering brisk judgments in the tradition of the paterfamilias. Alex Ross, The New Yorker, 11 Mar. 2024 His sister Deana posted on X (formerly Twitter) in June 2022 to pay tribute to the eldest of the Martin clan. Lynsey Eidell, Peoplemag, 10 Mar. 2024 The MacKenzie clan will also feature a younger iteration of future laird Colum MacKenzie as portrayed by Séamus McLean Ross. Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 7 Mar. 2024 The sublimity of the Creation story, the strangeness of Jacob wrestling with an angel (or maybe God himself), Abraham’s fearful vision of darkness — all of these are here, but briefly, sideshows to her main focus, which is on Genesis as a close-up account of one human clan. Francis Spufford, New York Times, 6 Mar. 2024 The O’Flaherty clan is still running the pub-restaurant, which reigns year-round as downtown San Jose’s Irish touchstone. Kate Bradshaw, The Mercury News, 4 Mar. 2024 Chalamet’s Paul Atreides is on the run from the evil Harkonnen clan on the desert planet Arrakis. Jordan Moreau, Variety, 1 Mar. 2024 Campaign events seemed to attract larger crowds in some smaller cities, where politics are more local and politicians are known through their clans. Farnaz Fassihi, New York Times, 29 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'clan.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Scottish Gaelic clann offspring, clan, from Old Irish cland plant, offspring, from Latin planta plant

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of clan was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near clan

Cite this Entry

“Clan.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/clan. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

clan

noun
1
a
: a group (as in the Scottish Highlands) made up of households whose heads claim to have a common ancestor
b
: a group of people having a common ancestor : family
2
: a group of persons united by a common interest
the whole clan of actors

More from Merriam-Webster on clan

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