1. 1部落的、族群的;引申指「只挺自己人、壁壘分明」(政治新聞常用,帶貶意)。談台灣原住民時,英文用 Indigenous 較穩妥。

    Tribal is the adjective from tribe. In its plain sense it just describes things belonging to a tribe: tribal land, tribal leaders, tribal languages, tribal art. In news writing you meet 'tribal conflict' or 'tribal areas'.

    But you should know that this word sits on uncomfortable ground. For a long time Europeans used 'tribe' for other people's societies while calling their own 'nations', and many people now feel the word makes a group sound primitive. In Taiwan, when talking about 原住民 in English, safer and more respectful choices are Indigenous peoples, Indigenous communities, or the specific name — Amis, Atayal, Paiwan. In the United States and Canada, though, 'tribal' is the official legal word — tribal government, tribal council — and Native nations use it about themselves, so it is correct there. So the same word can be neutral, offensive, or legally exact depending on where you are.

    There is also a very common modern meaning that has nothing to do with real tribes: tribal means people sticking to their own group and refusing to listen to the other side. ' has become tribal' means people vote for their team, not for the argument. This use is everywhere in newspapers now, and it is always a criticism.

    And in design, 'tribal' describes a style of bold black pattern — tribal tattoo, tribal print — which is a fashion label, not an accurate word about any real people.

組成tribe + -al, from Latin tribālis. Latin tribus was a division of the Roman people.

同家族的字

  • tribethe noun this adjective is built from

原始詞典資料6 筆記錄

以下是外部詞典記錄的用法,摘錄並精簡格式,我們還沒有寫成教學內容。上面的說明才是我們自己寫的;有些用法可能上面已經講過了。

tribaladj/ˈtɹaɪbəl/

  • 1

    Of or relating to tribes.

    • social order through tribal law
    • ‘What has he done?’ ‘Oh, killed a few natives. That wouldn’t count so much if it was all ‘tribal’; but he’s ‘gone cheeky’ and threatens wholesale murder. My job is to grab him before he slaughters more.’
  • 2

    Based on or organized according to tribes.

    • a tribal society
  • 3

    historicalrarebiologynatural-sciencesPhylogenic.

    • tribal history
  • 4

    Incorporating designs or styles typical of an indigenous people.

    • tribal techno music
    • a purse with a tribal design

tribalnoun/ˈtɹaɪbəl/

  • 1

    A design or image that has been influenced by indigenous peoples; especially such a tattoo.

  • 2

    A member of a tribe.

    • This right had been accepted by relative tribals but misobeyed and effaced by non-tribals and foreign peasants.
    • […] the legendary Adivasi leader Jaipal Singh Munda who came to represent the tribals not just of his native plateau, but also of all of India […]

摘錄自 英文維基詞典 English Wiktionary,已精簡格式;依 CC BY-SA 4.0 授權使用,改動後的內容同樣以此授權提供。