- a belief, custom or way of doing something that has existed for a long time among a particular group of people; a set of these beliefs or customs
- religious/cultural/ancient traditions
- This region is steeped in tradition.
- a tradition of something The company has a long tradition of fine design.
- The company has continued its tradition of innovation.
- The British are said to love tradition (= to want to do things in the way they have always been done).
- They broke with tradition (= did things differently) and got married quietly.
- by tradition By tradition, children play tricks on 1 April.
- according to tradition According to tradition, a tree grew on this spot.
- There's a tradition in our family that we have a party on New Year's Eve.
- in the tradition of somebody He's a politician in the tradition of (= similar in style to) Kennedy.
- a native culture expressed almost wholly through an oral tradition (= that is only spoken and not written down)
- He is motivated by a family tradition of charity and good works.
- his country's rich folk traditions
- His work has earned him a central place in the African American literary tradition.
Extra ExamplesTopics Religion and festivalsa2- By tradition, ships are often referred to as ‘she’ in English.
- Following in the Hitchcock tradition, he always appears in the films he directs.
- He broke with the family tradition and did not go down the mines.
- In a departure from tradition, the bride wore a red dress.
- He made it clear he was not going to be bound by tradition.
- In time-honoured tradition, a bottle of champagne was smashed on the ship.
- It became an annual tradition for me to ice the cake.
- Japan's rich cultural tradition and history
- The building was constructed in the best traditions of church architecture.
- The girl had challenged the traditions of her patriarchal tribe.
- The locals get together every year to keep this age-old tradition alive.
- The tradition dates back to the 16th century.
- They have inherited a rich tradition of music and dance.
- This region has a great musical tradition.
- an oral tradition handed down from generation to generation
- people of all faith traditions
- Brittany has a lively and very distinctive sense of tradition.
- Germany has a tradition of good quality newspapers.
- He decided not to follow the family tradition of joining the navy.
- This year there will be a break with tradition.
- The Punjabi have a proud military tradition.
- He is carrying on the family tradition of public service.
- This approach is in keeping with a long tradition.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- age-old
- ancient
- centuries-old
- …
- have
- become
- cherish
- …
- continue
- die hard
- exist
- …
- according to (a/the) tradition
- by tradition
- in (a/the) tradition
- …
- bound by tradition
- a departure from tradition
- in the best traditions of something
- …
Word Originlate Middle English: from Old French tradicion, or from Latin traditio(n-), from tradere ‘deliver, betray’, from trans- ‘across’ + dare ‘give’.
Check pronunciation:
tradition