as in clannish
bound together by feelings of very close association
the cliquish White House press corps soon let him know that he was not on the A-list
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cliquish
Adjective
-
Jews, because human beings are and always will be clannish.—
David Bezmozgis,
New Yorker,
6 Apr. 2025 -
This sort of soft, clannish corruption is not a coat of paint that can be stripped from the protectionist architecture; the dysfunction infests the very foundations of it.—
David B. McGarry,
Baltimore Sun,
30 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
In response, Delaware last March passed a law to make the state more alluring, to which Texas quickly counter-punched with an even friendlier law.—
Geoff Colvin,
Fortune,
7 Nov. 2025
-
The other side of this has been the money in the industry’s pivot first to cheaper talk shows, which don’t innovate enough to merit much critique, and now to a second pivot to turn those interview shows into video series, which makes podcasts more friendly on TikTok and Instagram and YouTube.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
7 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
The Friends set was notorious for being cliquey and insular.—
Shamira Ibrahim,
Vulture,
19 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
With spoofing tools, criminals can mimic real bank phone numbers and even use AI to reproduce familiar voices.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
6 Nov. 2025
-
The common ingredients are incredible storytellers who are excited about trying to make a series that feels authentic and realistic, and maybe feels familiar, but in a way that also feels elevated and sophisticated.—
Nellie Andreeva,
Deadline,
6 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
That is the beauty of it and the whole theatrical community is so close-knit.—
Pam Kragen,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
26 Oct. 2025
-
Pressing for payment could humiliate people, who often arrive with their extended families, Parmar explained, and in a community this close-knit, that could mean losing dozens of patients, including many of the Medicaid patients who keep the clinic afloat.—
Helen Ouyang,
The Atlantic,
21 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
This was a decisive turn away from Hasina’s India-first posture and toward closer alignment with Beijing.—
MUHIB RAHMAN,
Foreign Affairs,
12 Nov. 2025
-
Highly acidic foods like pickles and tomatoes will react with the can after an extended period of time, causing both taste and texture changes so pay particularly close attention to expiration dates on these items.—
Patricia Shannon,
Southern Living,
11 Nov. 2025
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Cite this Entry
“Cliquish.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cliquish. Accessed 12 Nov. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share