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Glite Dictionary
clanless

clanless

1 6.9
Not part of a clan or family group
  • adjective
  • /ˈklæn.ləs/
: sin clan
  • Many people in the city felt clanless, lacking the community bonds that others enjoyed.

Examples

  • The clanless individuals often found themselves searching for a place to belong.

  • This is the man of whom Aristotle, quoting Homer, said that he was "clanless, and hearthless, and lawless."

    Academic text (1999)

  • I am clanless.

    Fiction book (1999)

  • I'm clanless.

    Speak (2004)

  • In a society where everyone belongs to a group, being clanless can feel isolating.

Synonyms

nonaffiliated
vsclanless
1 5.9

Not connected to any group, organization, or political party

focuses on lacking kin or ancestry ties rather than formal membership
nontribal
vsclanless
1 6.1

Not related to or part of a tribe

is about absence from any kin-based or close family group

Surface Forms

clanless positive

Morphology

clanless = clan (transparent) = clan + less

Meaning is directly 'without a clan' formed by the productive suffix '-less', so a learner who knows 'clan' and '-less' can infer the meaning.

Etymology

The word clanless comes from clan, an old Gaelic word for 'family' or 'children', and the ending -less, which means 'without'. So, clanless means 'without a clan' or not part of a family group.