Meanings
comparative more cliquish · superlative most cliquish
- Of or pertaining to a clique.
- Tending to associate with a small and exclusive group.
But Mr. Kleinzahler, 55, noted both for poems that jarringly marry the high and the low and for keeping his distance from the New York illuminati, has found himself late in his career in a rather awkward spot: the cusp of respectability in the cliquish world of poetry.
2005 February 8, Timothy Williams, “In Addition to His Pugnacity and Charm, He Can Write Poetry”, in The New York Times
Synonyms & antonyms
adjectivebefitting or characteristic of those who incline to social exclusiveness and who rebuff the advances of people considered inferior
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
Translations
Chinese Mandarin 小集團的 /小集团的, 小圈子的
- 小集團的 /小集团的 (xiǎo jítuán de)of a clique
- 小圈子的 (xiǎo quānzi de)of a clique
- 派系的 (pàixì de)of a clique
- 有小集團傾向的 /有小集团倾向的tending to associate with a small group
- 有 小集团倾向的 (yǒu xiǎo jítuán qīngxiàng de)tending to associate with a small group
Dutch kliek-, kliek-
- kliek-of a clique
- kliek-tending to associate with a small group
Finnish klikki-, klikkiytyvä
- klikki-of a clique
- klikkiytyvätending to associate with a small group
Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with cliquish
All rhymes →Cite this entry
cliquish. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/cliquish
“cliquish.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/cliquish. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “cliquish,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/cliquish.
Source: cliquish on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.