clannish

clan·nish

adj \ˈkla-nish\

Definition of CLANNISH

1

: of or relating to a clan <clannish traditions>

2

: tending to associate only with a select group of similar background or status <a clannish community>

— clan·nish·ly adverb

— clan·nish·ness noun

Examples of CLANNISH

1. The college faculty can be pretty clannish, so it's difficult to be an outsider there.
2. <a clannish family that can be rather cool to outsiders>

First Known Use of CLANNISH

1776

Related to CLANNISH

Synonyms: close–knit, cliquey, cliquish

Related Words: bosom, chummy, close, familiar, friendly, inseparable, intimate, pack [chiefly Scottish], pally, palsy, palsy-walsy [slang], thick, tight; exclusive, snobbish, snobby; incestuous; forbidding, inhospitable, unfriendly

Near Antonyms: receptive, welcoming

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Rhymes with CLANNISH

banish, mannish, planish, Spanish, tannish, vanish