in-group

noun

1
: a group with which one feels a sense of solidarity or community of interests compare out-group
2
: clique

Examples of in-group in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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And hip-hop revels in hyperlocal references, in-group nicknames, real or invented slang, glancing verbal and musical allusions, and multilayered wordplay. Jon Pareles, New York Times, 28 Dec. 2024 The history that made us into creatures capable of coöperation also gave us the capacity to hate one another in the aggregate, to draw sharp lines dividing the in-group from the out-group. Nikhil Krishnan, The New Yorker, 23 Dec. 2024 Just like cults, marketers exploit vulnerabilities, create in-groups and out-groups and play on emotions to drive behavior. Dr. Mara Einstein, Deadline, 29 Nov. 2024 To be sure, in-group love and out-group hatred are logically interconnected: the prospect of a common threat can bring us together, so the enemy of my enemy is my friend. Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic, Forbes, 23 Oct. 2024 In any large organization, there are always smaller cliques, in-groups and out-groups. Francine Russo, Scientific American, 6 Sep. 2024 Conversely, when people from an in-group spend time with those from an out-group, dislike or mistrust declines. Isabel Sawhill, Foreign Affairs, 4 Jan. 2021 When revised data support the in-group’s political policies, members of the out-group sometime allege that the numbers were cooked for partisan advantage. Bill Conerly, Forbes, 11 Sep. 2024 Moreover, recent research has revealed that rural Americans have developed a sense of obligation that is more focused on local in-groups, in contrast with a more universalistic sense of moral obligation found among urban dwellers. Jonathan Rodden, Foreign Affairs, 20 Apr. 2020

Word History

First Known Use

1907, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of in-group was in 1907

Dictionary Entries Near in-group

Cite this Entry

“In-group.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/in-group. Accessed 8 Jan. 2025.

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