clan

noun

ˈklan 

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

Synonyms

• community
• crowd
• pack
• network
• bunch
• clique
• gang
• circle
• coven
• organization

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

The new season will also see Justin training the three young wizards for the Family Wizard Competition, all while the Russo clan faces a new threat that could change everything. —Anna Chan, Billboard, 27 June 2025

And, of course, the Kardashian-Jenner clan stepped out in style. —Ashlyn Robinette, People.com, 26 June 2025

Pierce Brosnan and Helen Mirren play the clan’s patriarch, Conrad, and matriarch, Maeve, respectively. —Kimberly Roots, TVLine, 23 June 2025

This time around, the superpowered clan struggle through personal issues while also working on getting some PR going. —Brian Truitt, USA Today, 21 June 2025

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

Phrases Containing clan

• inter-clan
• sub-clan

Rhymes for clan

• an
• ban
• bran
• can
• cann
• duan
• fan
• flan
• gran
• jann
• klan
• lan

Kids Definition

clan

noun

ˈklan 

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