(~s)
Frequency: The word is one of the 3000 most common words in English.
1.
A ~ is a custom or belief that has existed for a long time.
...the rich ~s of Afro-Cuban music, and dance...
Mary has carried on the family ~ of giving away plants...
N-VAR
2.
If you say that something or someone is in the ~ of a person or thing from the past, you mean that they have many features that remind you of that person or thing.
They’re marvellous pictures in the ~ of Gainsborough.
PREP-PHRASE