Meaning & use
incestuous
Involving sexual relations between close relatives, or, more broadly, marked by excessively close and self-serving relationships.
See it in a sentence
The ancient myth describes an incestuous marriage between siblings who ruled the kingdom together.
Critics called the small industry incestuous, since the same few people funded, reviewed, and awarded each other's work.
A note on using this word
The figurative sense criticizes a closed group that only benefits its own members, common in discussions of small industries or communities.
Words with a similar meaning
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