cult
noun
- a system of religious worship or ritual
- a quasi-religious group, often living in a colony, with a charismatic leader who indoctrinates members with unorthodox or extremist views, practices, or beliefs
- devoted attachment to, or extravagant admiration for, a person, principle, or lifestyle, esp. when regarded as a fad: the cult of nudism
- the object of such attachment
- a group of followers; sect
See cult in American Heritage Dictionary 4
cult
nouna. A religion or religious sect generally considered to be extremist or false, with its followers often living in an unconventional manner under the guidance of an authoritarian, charismatic leader.
b. The followers of such a religion or sect.
- A system or community of religious worship and ritual.
- The formal means of expressing religious reverence; religious ceremony and ritual.
- A usually nonscientific method or regimen claimed by its originator to have exclusive or exceptional power in curing a particular disease.
a. Obsessive, especially faddish, devotion to or veneration for a person, principle, or thing.
b. The object of such devotion.
- An exclusive group of persons sharing an esoteric, usually artistic or intellectual interest.
Origin: Latin cultus, worship, from past participle of colere, to cultivate; see kwel-1 in Indo-European roots.
Related Forms:
- cultic culˈtic, cultˈish adjective
Learn more about cult
link/cite
print
suggestion box
