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lifeway

lifeway

1 7.7
A group's usual customs and daily life
  • noun
  • /ˈlaɪfˌweɪ/
translation icon : modo de vida
  • Retaining some of the old lifeways helps maintain their cultural identities in the new place.
  • traditional lifeways
  • indigenous lifeways
  • native lifeways

Examples

  • To many Indigenous peoples, the practice of reconstructing past lifeways without incorporating oral histories and ethnographic information is viewed with suspicion.

    Academic text (2005)
  • My family's experience and my knowledge of Bedouin lifeways constitute the major part of the ethnographic data.

    Academic text (1990)
  • Collective cultural identities are primary in the religious lifeways of American Indian communities.

    Academic text (1996)
  • In a rapidly changing world, Deloria did not see American Indian lifeways as dying out.

    Academic text (2018)
  • Did their particular lifeways or habits subject them to specific diseases and hardships?

    Academic text (1996)
  • Native American elders are revered for their knowledge, wisdom, life experience, and the sharing of cultural lifeways.

    Academic text (2009)
  • Such movements tended to focus on reviving or maintaining their perceived older lifeways and autonomy.

    Academic text (2008)
  • Our values and lifeways are inconsistent with the materialism and militarism characteristic of today's world powers.

    Academic text (2002)
  • The Recollect and Jesuit accounts describe the lifeways and beliefs of indigenous peoples and bolster French support for their conversion efforts.

    Academic text (2017)
  • Retaining some of the old lifeways helps maintain their cultural identities in the new place.

Synonyms

life
vslifeway
1.0

A particular way of living that includes daily activities and relationships

focuses on group customs and daily habits rather than personal purpose or existence
lifestyle
vslifeway
515 2.3

The way a person lives, including habits and daily choices

emphasizes shared cultural customs and group practices rather than personal consumption
way of life
vslifeway
193 2.4

The usual habits, beliefs, and actions of a person or group

focuses on group or cultural customs rather than individual choices

Surface Forms

lifeway singular
lifeways plural

Morphology

lifeway = life + way (transparent) = life + way

A straightforward noun compound meaning 'way of life'; learners who know 'life' and 'way' can infer the meaning.

Etymology

Lifeway combines life and way, so it literally means a 'way of life'. So, like lifestyle, it describes the habits, customs, and daily choices that show how a group or culture lives.