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Cult

/kʌlt/

A group or sect of people with a deviant religious, philosophical or cultural identity, often existing on the margins of society or exploitative towards its members.

Full Dictionary Entry

📖 Definitions of "Cult"

noun

1
A group or sect of people with a deviant religious, philosophical or cultural identity, often existing on the margins of society or exploitative towards its members.
"Oh my gosh, I'm in a repressive cult! How can I leave it?"
2
Devotion to a saint.
3
The veneration and religious rites given to a deity, esp. in a historical polytheistic context.
4
A religion that evolved out of another religion but has become a different religion through developing a radically different theology.

adjective

1
Of or relating to a cult.
2
Enjoyed by a small, loyal group.
"a cult horror movie"

adjective

1
True to the ideology of black metal or a stereotypical manifestation of that subculture.
"You gotta wear make-up at kvlt gigs or you'll be thrown out."

🔄 Synonyms of "Cult"

6 synonyms found via WordNet and Google Books.

Word	Definition
furornoun	A general uproar or commotion.
ragenoun	Violent uncontrolled anger.
crazenoun	A temporary passion or infatuation, as for some new amusement, pursuit, or fashion; a fad.
furorenoun	(British spelling) Alternative form of furor. [A general uproar or commotion.]
religious cultnoun	a system of religious beliefs and rituals
fadnoun	A phenomenon that becomes popular for a very short time.

💡 Words with a Similar Meaning to "Cult"

Found via reverse dictionary — words that share a conceptual meaning.

Word	Definition
fadnoun	A phenomenon that becomes popular for a very short time.
crazenoun	A temporary passion or infatuation, as for some new amusement, pursuit, or fashion; a fad.
furorenoun	(British spelling) Alternative form of furor. [A general uproar or commotion.]
furornoun	A general uproar or commotion.
ragenoun	Violent uncontrolled anger.
religious cultnoun	a system of religious beliefs and rituals
religiousnoun	Concerning religion.
religionnoun	(uncountable) Belief in a spiritual or metaphysical reality (often including at least one deity), accompanied by practices or rituals pertaining to the belief.
sectariannoun	Of, relating to, or partial to a sect.
sectarianismnoun	Rigid adherence to a particular sect, denomination, ideology, or party.
heresynoun	(religion) A doctrine held by a member of a religion at variance or conflict with established religious beliefs.
hereticnoun	Someone whose beliefs are contrary to the fundamental tenets of a religion they claim to belong to.
sectnoun	An offshoot of a larger religion or denomination.
fanaticismnoun	The characteristic or practice of being a fanatic.
venerationnoun	Profound reverence, respect or awe.
churchnoun	(countable, Christianity) A Christian house of worship; a building where Christian religious services take place.
worshipnoun	The devotion accorded to a deity or to a sacred object.
ismnoun	An ideology, system of thought, or practice that can be described by a word ending in -ism.
beliefnoun	Mental acceptance of a claim as true.
sisterhoodnoun	The state, or kinship of being sisters.