folk 1 of 2

noun

ˈfōk How to pronounce folk (audio)
Definition of folknext
1
as in family
folks plural a group of persons who come from the same ancestor her folks have farmed that land for five generations

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in class
one of the segments of society into which people are grouped the working-class folk with no airs or pretentions

Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in people
folks plural human beings in general c'mon, folks, let's get to work

Synonyms & Similar Words

folk

2 of 2

adjective

as in tribal

Related Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of folk
Noun
Friday’s nuptials, also at MSG, were much larger, with a vast guest list of A-lists, industry folk, and musicians. — Emily Zemler, Rolling Stone, 3 July 2026 From the Sacramento Valley to Modesto and Merced For Sacramento and folks south towards Modesto and Merced, high temps should hold in the mid- to upper 80s Thursday afternoon thanks to the Delta breeze kicking in. — Sean MacAday, Sacbee.com, 2 July 2026
Adjective
Merrifield sought instead to explore folk magic through the material objects that the practitioners themselves had left behind. — Geoff Manaugh, The New Yorker, 31 Oct. 2019 The songwriter in question is Phoebe Kreutz, darling of the New York City anti-folk movement of the early ‘00s. — Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 8 July 2022 See All Example Sentences for folk
Recent Examples of Synonyms for folk
  1. family
  2. class
  3. humanity
  4. tribal
  5. clan
  6. caste
  7. ethnic
  8. level
Noun
  • The family fought for three hours last July Fourth to stay alive after more than a summer’s worth of rain fell overnight on bone-dry soil, pushing the waterway from about 3 feet to 30 feet in just 45 minutes.
    — Alisha Ebrahimji, CNN Money, 6 July 2026
  • History shows family successions, whether in North Korea or Syria, tend to happen through rigid authoritarian control, with the transfer of power underwritten by whoever controls the military.
    — Romina Ruiz-Goiriena, USA Today, 6 July 2026
Definition of family
Noun
  • Monthly events like their floral arrangement workshop and cocktail classes create a space where people can enjoy an experience while gaining new skills and knowledge.
    — Blair Crosby, AJC.com, 5 July 2026
  • Students return for the first day of classes since the shooting.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 5 July 2026
Definition of class
Noun
  • That suggests data centers are a stand-in for anger at Big Tech and AI, which some industry leaders have warned could result in mass unemployment and—in a worst-case scenario—humanity’s extinction.
    — The Week US, TheWeek, 6 July 2026
  • Both Hathaway and Nyong’o said the film had given depth and humanity to their iconic characters of Penelope and Helen of Troy and gone behind the myth.
    — Nada Aboul Kheir, Deadline, 6 July 2026
Definition of humanity
Adjective
  • Then came a one-megawatt array that helped power the tribal casino out on the highway.
    — Adam Burke, NPR, 6 July 2026
  • The state’s tribal casinos were a driving force in lobbying the gaming bureau to adopt the regulations.
    — Ethan Varian, Mercury News, 6 July 2026
Definition of tribal
Noun
  • Zeenat’s mother was a respected woman in her clan; both of Zeenat’s sisters had married into a Syed family, and her brother worked for the village head and had authority enough to report directly to the local landlord.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 30 June 2026
  • Rhaena is cast out, but the rest of the Velaryon clan are closer than ever.
    — Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 29 June 2026
Definition of clan
Noun
  • The engineer’s caste was Dalit, considered to be on the lower rungs of society, which allegedly made the engineer a target for harassment and discrimination from higher-caste managers.
    — David John Chávez, Mercury News, 28 June 2026
  • To that point, human history was a tale of conquest and caste and rigid hierarchies, a world where the strong dominated the weak, where power and wealth and status flowed through lineage and the many were ruled by the few.
    — Hilary Gowins, Chicago Tribune, 20 June 2026
Definition of caste
Adjective
  • Additionally, the study population didn’t represent enough men or diverse ethnic groups, limiting generalizability, Diaz said.
    — Allison Forsyth, Health, 30 June 2026
  • The Kurds are one of the largest stateless ethnic groups in the Middle East, with communities spread across Iran, Iraq, Syria and Turkey.
    — Efrat Lachter, FOXNews.com, 30 June 2026
Definition of ethnic
Noun
  • The acknowledgment reflects an unusual level of cooperation between Washington and Caracas despite years of intense political confrontation.
    — Antonio María Delgado, Miami Herald, 3 July 2026
  • Temperatures in a vehicle, especially one sitting on hot, sunny pavement, can quickly heat up to dangerous levels that can lead to heat stroke and death.
    — Dinah Voyles Pulver, USA Today, 3 July 2026
Definition of level

Browse Nearby Words

folios
folk
folklife
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Cite this Entry

“Folk.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/folk. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on folk

Nglish: Translation of folk for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about folk

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