tradition

A2 Topic:Culture & History

US /tɹəˈdɪʃ.ən/ See IPA manual

Freq #3293

Meanings

1

noun
A custom or belief passed down from one generation to the next.

Decorating a tree is a popular Christmas tradition.
2

noun
A long-established way of doing something.

Following tradition, the winning athlete ran a lap around the track.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · a custom or belief passed... custom

Word family

Forms traditions

Derived forms traditional traditionalism traditionallytraditionarilytraditionary

Appears in

Phrases (1)

See all

oral tradition
the passing of stories or knowledge from person to person through speech

Adjective + noun

Simplified etymology

Tradition entered English in the late Middle Ages and derives from Latin tradere, “to deliver” or “hand over,” formed from trans-, “across,” and dare, “to give.” Its underlying sense is therefore something handed down from one person or generation to another. Traitor and treason come from the same root.

Etymology

From Middle English tradicioun, from Old French tradicion, from Latin trāditiō, from the verb trādō. Doublet of treason.

*deh₃- Proto-Indo-European tradicioun Middle English tradicion Old French trāditiō Latin

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Culture & History

External links

# tradition

**Type:** Word
**Level:** A2
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /tɹəˈdɪʃ.ən/
**Frequency rank:** 3293

## Meanings
1. A custom or belief passed down from one generation to the next.
2. A long-established way of doing something.

## Examples
- Decorating a tree is a popular Christmas tradition.
- Following tradition, the winning athlete ran a lap around the track.

## Derived Forms
- traditional
- traditionalism
- traditionally
- traditionarily
- traditionary

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: *deh₃-
- Root: tradicioun
- Root: tradicion
- Root: trāditiō

## Etymology
From Middle English tradicioun, from Old French tradicion, from Latin trāditiō, from the verb trādō. Doublet of treason.

## AI Etymology
Tradition is from Middle English tradicioun, from Old French tradicion, from Latin trāditiō, from the verb trādō. Doublet of treason. The historical line also includes Proto-Indo-European *deh₃-, Middle English tradicioun, Old French tradicion, Latin trāditiō. In present-day use, it can mean a custom or belief passed down from one generation to the next, or a long-established way of doing something. Derived formations include traditional, traditionalism, traditionally, traditionarily, traditionary.

## Topics
- Culture & History

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