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What is ethnicity?

Ethnicity

 [eth-nis-i-tee]   Example Sentences Origin

eth·nic·i·ty

   [eth-nis-i-tee]
noun, plural -ties.
1.
ethnic traits, background, allegiance, or association.
2.
an ethnic group: Representatives of several ethnicities were present.
Origin:
1765–75, for earlier sense; ethnic + -ity
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
Cite This Source Link To Ethnicity

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Ethnicity is always a great word to know.
So is zedonk. Does it mean:
the offspring of a zebra and a donkey.
a screen or mat covered with a dark material for shielding a camera lens from excess light or glare.
LEARN MORE UNUSUAL WORDS WITH WORD DYNAMO...
Example Sentences
  • Don't be afraid to bring ethnicity into an American holiday.
  • Maybe the list of judges wasn't diverse enough in politics, ethnicity or gender, some will surely say.
  • Because he was light skinned, some people were unsure of his ethnicity.
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Collins
World English Dictionary
ethnic or ethnical (ˈɛθnɪk)
 
—adj
1.  relating to or characteristic of a human group having racial, religious, linguistic, and certain other traits in common
2.  relating to the classification of mankind into groups, esp on the basis of racial characteristics
3.  denoting or deriving from the cultural traditions of a group of people: the ethnic dances of Slovakia
4.  characteristic of another culture: the ethnic look; ethnic food
 
—n
5.  chiefly (US), (Austral) a member of an ethnic group, esp a minority group
 
[C14 (in the senses: heathen, Gentile): from Late Latin ethnicus, from Greek ethnikos, from ethnos race]
 
usage  Referring to a person as an ethnic is broadly acceptable in the US, Australia and Canada, but could well cause offence in the UK and elsewhere
 
ethnical or ethnical
 
—adj
 
—n
 
[C14 (in the senses: heathen, Gentile): from Late Latin ethnicus, from Greek ethnikos, from ethnos race]
 
usage  Referring to a person as an ethnic is broadly acceptable in the US, Australia and Canada, but could well cause offence in the UK and elsewhere
 
'ethnically or ethnical
 
—adv
 
ethnicity or ethnical
 
—n

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

ethnicity
1953, from ethnic + -ity.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Cultural Dictionary
ethnicity [(eth-nis-uh-tee)]

Identity with or membership in a particular racial, national, or cultural group and observance of that group's customs, beliefs, and language.

Note: Many minority groups in the United States maintain strong ethnic identity; especially in cities, immigrants are often attracted to ethnic communities established by people from their own country, communities in which many traditional cultural features are maintained. (See melting pot.)
The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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