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View synonyms for
cult
[ kuhlt ]
noun
- a particular system of religious worship, especially with reference to its rites and ceremonies.
- an instance of great veneration of a person, ideal, or thing, especially as manifested by a body of admirers:
the physical fitness cult.
- the object of such devotion.
- a group or sect bound together by veneration of the same thing, person, ideal, etc.
- Sociology. a group having a sacred ideology and a set of rites centering around their sacred symbols.
- a religion or sect considered to be false, unorthodox, or extremist, with members often living outside of conventional society under the direction of a charismatic leader.
- the members of such a religion or sect.
- any system for treating human sickness that originated by a person usually claiming to have sole insight into the nature of disease, and that employs methods regarded as unorthodox or unscientific.
adjective
- of or relating to a cult.
- of, for, or attracting a small group of devotees:
a cult movie.
cult
/ ʌ /
noun
- a specific system of religious worship, esp with reference to its rites and deity
- a sect devoted to such a system
- a quasi-religious organization using devious psychological techniques to gain and control adherents
- sociol a group having an exclusive ideology and ritual practices centred on sacred symbols, esp one characterized by lack of organizational structure
- intense interest in and devotion to a person, idea, or activity
the cult of yoga
- the person, idea, etc, arousing such devotion
- something regarded as fashionable or significant by a particular group
- ( as modifier )
a cult show
- modifier of, relating to, or characteristic of a cult or cults
a cult figure
cult
- In anthropology , an organization for the conduct of ritual, magical, or other religious observances. Many so-called primitive tribes, for example, have ancestor cults, in which dead ancestors are considered divine and activities are organized to respect their memory and invoke their aid. A cult is also a religious group held together by a dominant, often charismatic individual, or by the worship of a divinity, an idol, or some other object. ( See animism (see also animism ), fetish , and totemism .)
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Notes
The term cult often suggests extreme beliefs and bizarre behavior.
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Derived Forms
- ˈܱپ, noun
- ˈܱپ, noun
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Other 51Թ Forms
- ܱt ܱ·ٳ· [kuhl, -choo-, uh, l], adjective
- ܱi adjective
- t·ܱ noun adjective
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51Թ History and Origins
Origin of cult1
First recorded in 1610–20; from Latin cultus “habitation, tilling, refinement, worship,” equivalent to cul-, variant stem of colere “to inhabit, till, worship” + -tus, suffix of verb action
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51Թ History and Origins
Origin of cult1
C17: from Latin cultus cultivation, refinement, from colere to till
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Example Sentences
Examples have not been reviewed.
After the war, the cargo cult became a tradition, with adherents even building mock airstrips to induce John Frum to return from the skies with cargo.
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The 11-year-old theater shows a mix of classic cult restorations, in addition to new specialty releases.
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It has been called a "criminal cult" and its activists branded "eco-loons" by the Sun.
From
Donald Trump is an autocrat and the leader of a political personality cult.
From
"It was a proper disaster, but it didn't cause strange glowing plants or mutants or dangerous cults to emerge."
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