Anthropological Practices

noun a misplaced or excessive admiration for a particular person or thing

• The anthropologist studied the religious cult in depth.
• Have you heard about that cult that believes in aliens?
• I heard she joined a cult and now she's acting all weird.
• The obsession with designer labels has turned into a fashion cult.

noun a person or animal that primarily consumes flesh or meat

• The scientist studied the behavior of the flesh eater in its natural habitat.
• I heard that Bob is a real flesh eater when it comes to steak.
• Watch out for that guy, he's a total flesh eater at the buffet.
• Her relentless ambition was like that of a flesh eater, always hungry for success.

noun a notable or heroic deed; an exploit

verb to perform a notable or heroic deed; to accomplish an exploit

• The artist used precise gestural strokes to create a dynamic composition.
• She made a grand gest to signal for everyone to come over.
• He threw up a peace gest before leaving the party.
• Her decision to quit her job was a bold gest towards pursuing her passion.

adjective relating to, characterized by, or exhibiting mimicry

• The artist used mimetic techniques to accurately replicate the details of the flower in their painting.
• She has a mimetic talent for imitating celebrity voices.
• The comedian's mimetic skills had the audience in stitches.
• The novel's mimetic portrayal of society shed light on its flaws.

noun a place or object used for making offerings to a deity in order to appease or reconcile

adjective serving to appease or make favorable; intended to reconcile or appease

• The priest conducted the propitiatory ritual to appease the gods.
• The propitiatory offering was made to ensure good luck.
• I heard they did a propitiatory dance to ward off bad vibes.
• Her smile acted as a propitiatory gesture to smooth over the awkward situation.

noun a behavior in which individuals in a group clean, pick, or groom each other as a form of social bonding

• Social grooming is an important behavior observed in many primate species for maintaining social bonds.
• When we hang out together, it's like our own version of social grooming.
• We just love to chat and catch up, it's like our social grooming time.
• In the business world, networking events serve as a form of social grooming to build connections.