different between clique vs league

English

Etymology

Borrowed from French clique, ultimately of imitative origin. Influenced by "claque", though this may have happened in French rather than in English.

Pronunciation

• (UK)
  • IPA^(key): /kli?k/
    • Rhymes: -i?k
• (US)
  • IPA^(key): /kli?k/
    • Rhymes: -i?k
  • IPA^(key): /?kl?k/
    • Homophones: click, klick
    • Rhymes: -?k

Noun

clique (plural cliques)

1. A small, exclusive group of individuals, usually according to lifestyle or social status; a cabal.

   This school used to be really friendly, but now everyone keeps to their own cliques.

   • 1931, Dorothy L. Sayers, The Five Red Herrings

     There had been talk of some disagreement about a picture, but in Sir Maxwell's experience, artists frequently disagreed about pictures, with no more consequences than a little cold-shouldering or the formation of a clique.

2. (graph theory) A subgraph isomorphic to a complete graph.

   The problem of finding the largest clique in an arbitrary graph is NP-complete.

3. (Internet) A group of related web sites that link to each other, like a webring but with exclusive membership determined by the clique owner.
   • 1999, "Jackie", someone help me out? (on newsgroup alt.fan.leo-dicaprio)

     Does anyone know what an internet clique is/does? I came across a few and am thoroughly confused.

   • 2000, "- deanna -", ot: hiya (on newsgroup alt.fan.backstreet.boys)

     even though we're not "regulars" anymore...*sniffle*...we still can't forget the NG...i always tell new fans about it...(people who join my clique, etc...)...and besides...i owe the NG a LOT...itz where i met my best friend...

   • 2001, "spee2k", future no doubt website.... (on newsgroup alt.music.no-doubt)

     you always have to click some big section and you get a whole new set of options in a different frame, thats^[sic] usually on the other side of the screen. when you're there, you can choose from (in a section site stuff or something like that) link me, link you, links, top 10 links, free for all links, cliques, and webrings.

Synonyms

• (small, exclusive group): coterie, ingroup, inner circle, camp

Derived terms

Related terms

• cliquey

Translations

Verb

clique (third-person singular simple present cliques, present participle cliquing, simple past and past participle cliqued)

1. (intransitive) To associate together in a clannish way; to act with others secretly to gain a desired end; to plot.

Usage notes

• Often used in the form clique together.

See also

• clique on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

Dutch

Etymology

Borrowing from French clique.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /klik/
• Hyphenation: cli?que
• Rhymes: -ik

Noun

clique f (plural cliques)

1. Alternative spelling of kliek (“clique, coterie”).
2. (graph theory) clique, subgraph

French

Etymology

Old French cliquer.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /klik/
• Homophones: clic, clics, cliquent, cliques
• Rhymes: -ik

Noun

clique f (plural cliques)

1. clique

Derived terms

• prendre ses cliques et ses claques

Descendants

Verb

clique

1. first-person singular present indicative of cliquer
2. third-person singular present indicative of cliquer
3. first-person singular present subjunctive of cliquer
4. third-person singular present subjunctive of cliquer
5. second-person singular imperative of cliquer

Further reading

• “clique” in Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

Portuguese

Etymology 1

Borrowed from French clique.

Noun

clique m (plural cliques)

1. clique (small, exclusive group of people)

Etymology 2

Borrowed from English click.

Noun

clique m (plural cliques)

1. click (sharp sound)
2. (phonetics) (click)
3. click (the act of pressing a button)
4. light-bulb moment

Verb

clique

first-person singular (eu) present subjunctive of clicar

1. third-person singular (ele and ela, also used with você and others) present subjunctive of clicar
2. third-person singular (você) affirmative imperative of clicar
3. third-person singular (você) negative imperative of clicar

References

Spanish

Verb

clique

1. First-person singular (yo) present subjunctive form of clicar.
2. Formal second-person singular (usted) present subjunctive form of clicar.
3. Third-person singular (él, ella, also used with usted^?) present subjunctive form of clicar.
4. Formal second-person singular (usted) imperative form of clicar.

English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /li??/
• Rhymes: -i??

Etymology 1

From Middle English liege, ligg, lige (“a pact between governments, an agreement, alliance”), from Middle French ligue, from Italian lega, from the verb legare, from Latin lig? (“I tie”).

Noun

league (plural leagues)

1. A group or association of cooperating members.
   • 1668, John Denham, The Passion of Dido for Aeneas

     And let there be / 'Twixt us and them no league, nor amity.

2. (sports) An organization of sports teams which play against one another for a championship.

3. (informal, rugby) Ellipsis of rugby league

4. (often in the negative) A class or type of people or things that are evenly matched or on the same level.

5. A prefecture-level administrative unit in Inner Mongolia (Chinese: ?).

Derived terms

Related terms

• ally
• alliance

Descendants

• ? Japanese: ??? (r?gu)
• ? Korean: ?? (rigeu)

Translations

Verb

league (third-person singular simple present leagues, present participle leaguing, simple past and past participle leagued)

1. To form an association; to unite in a league or confederacy; to combine for mutual support.

   (Can we find and add a quotation of South to this entry?)

Translations

Etymology 2

From Middle English lege (“league”), from Late Latin leuca, leuga (“the Gaulish mile”), from Gaulish, from Proto-Celtic *lewg? (compare Middle Breton leau, Welsh lew, Breton lev / leo (“league”)).

Noun

league (plural leagues)

1. (measurement) The distance that a person can walk in one hour, commonly taken to be approximately three English miles (about five kilometers).
   • 1751-1753, Antoine-Simon Le Page du Pratz, History of Louisiana (PG), p. 47

     Seven leagues above the mouth of the river we meet with two other passes, as large as the middle one by which we entered.
2. A stone erected near a public road to mark the distance of a league.

Translations

References

• Douglas Harper (2001–2021) , “league”, in Online Etymology Dictionary
• Middle English Dictionary, lege