Definition

Adverb: 1. In a manner involving or characterized by incest: Describes an action done through or related to sexual relations between closely related family members. 2. In an overly close or self-contained manner: Used metaphorically to describe relationships or systems that are excessively inward-looking, exclusive, or self-perpetuating, often to their detriment.

Usage and Examples

• Literal Usage (involving incest):

  • The royal lineage was maintained incestuously for generations, leading to genetic disorders.
  • In the tragic myth, the characters were incestuously entangled.

• Metaphorical Usage (excessively close or closed):

  • The department operated incestuously, hiring only from within and never seeking new ideas.
  • The political dynasty governed the province incestuously, with power passing only among a few families.

Advanced Usage

• "To marry incestuously": To enter into a marriage that is legally or culturally defined as incestuous.

  • In some ancient cultures, pharaohs would marry incestuously to preserve the purity of the royal bloodline.

• "An incestuously close relationship": A relationship that is abnormally exclusive and resistant to outside influence.

  • The board of directors had an incestuously close relationship with the CEO, failing to provide independent oversight.

Variants and Related Words

• Incest (n): Sexual relations between people classified as being too closely related to marry.
• Incestuous (adj):
  • Involving or guilty of incest.
  • (Metaphorical) Excessively closed and interdependent.

    • The industry's incestuous relationships stifle competition.

Synonyms

• Literally: By consanguinity (in a legal/biological context).
• Metaphorically: Clannishly, exclusively, inward-lookingly, nepotistically.

Related Idioms and Phrases

• "To breed incestuously":
  • Literally: To procreate through incest.
  • Metaphorically: To perpetuate a group or system without introducing new, external elements, leading to stagnation.

    • The old aristocracy bred incestuously, both in lineage and in ideology.

Adverb

1. by incest
   • incestuously conceived