ethnic

1 of 2

adjective

eth·​nic ˈeth-nik 

1

a

: of or relating to large groups of people classed according to common racial, national, tribal, religious, linguistic, or cultural origin or background

ethnic minorities

ethnic enclaves

b

: being a member of a specified ethnic group

an ethnic German

c

: of, relating to, or characteristic of a minority ethnic group

ethnic neighborhoods

ethnic foods

2

archaic : of or relating to the Gentiles or to nations not converted to Christianity : pagan

… ancient ethnic revels of a faith long since forsaken …

—Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

ethnic

2 of 2

noun

chiefly US

: a member of an ethnic group

especially : a member of a minority group who retains the customs, language, or social views of the group

Synonyms of ethnic

Adjective

• racial
• ethnical

Examples of ethnic in a Sentence

Adjective

The U.S. has a wide variety of ethnic groups made up of immigrants or their descendants.

a festival featuring ethnic food and music

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

For Dua, puberty and social maturity become knotted up in unpredictable notions of bodily harm (whether acted upon, or merely threatened), as Serbian boys and men harass her on the way home from school, lacing their catcalls with ethnic slurs. —Siddhant Adlakha, Variety, 13 May 2026

In 2020, Turkey strongly backed Azerbaijan in its six-week conflict with ethnic Armenian forces backed by Armenia over Karabakh, which resulted in Azerbaijan regaining control of a significant part of the region and areas around it. —ABC News, 13 May 2026

Noun

To meet their growth targets, banks hired increasing numbers of women, African Americans, Asian Americans, and white ethnics, all of whom had been excluded from or simply wary about pursuing careers in finance. —Literary Hub, 15 May 2026

The essay needed to be written because no prominent voices are addressing the distinct possibility that Iran’s ethnics might secede, chiefly the larger ones with kin across borders. —Melik Kaylan, Forbes.com, 22 Jan. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English, from Late Latin ethnicus, from Greek ethnikos national, gentile, from ethnos nation, people; akin to Greek ēthos custom — more at sib

First Known Use

Adjective

1542, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Noun

1941, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing ethnic

• ethnic cleansing
• ethnic minorities
• inter-ethnic

Rhymes for ethnic

• interethnic
• multiethnic

Kids Definition

ethnic

1 of 2 noun

eth·​nic ˈeth-nik 

: a member of an ethnic group

especially : a member of a minority group who keeps customs, language, or social ideas of the group

ethnic

2 of 2 adjective

1

: of or relating to groups of people with common traits and customs and a sense of shared identity

ethnic minorities

2

: of or relating to ethnics

ethnic neighborhoods

ethnically

-ni-k(ə-)lē

adverb