cult

[kuhlt]

noun

1. a particular system of religious worship, especially with reference to its rites and ceremonies.

2. an instance of great veneration of a person, ideal, or thing, especially as manifested by a body of admirers.

   the physical fitness cult.

3. the object of such devotion.

4. a group or sect bound together by veneration of the same thing, person, ideal, etc.

5. Sociology.,  a group having a sacred ideology and a set of rites centering around their sacred symbols.

6. 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.

7. the members of such a religion or sect.

8. 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

1. of or relating to a cult.

2. of, for, or attracting a small group of devotees.

   a cult movie.

cult

/ kʌlt /

noun

1. a specific system of religious worship, esp with reference to its rites and deity

2. a sect devoted to such a system

3. a quasi-religious organization using devious psychological techniques to gain and control adherents

4. sociol a group having an exclusive ideology and ritual practices centred on sacred symbols, esp one characterized by lack of organizational structure

5. intense interest in and devotion to a person, idea, or activity

   the cult of yoga

6. the person, idea, etc, arousing such devotion

7. 1. something regarded as fashionable or significant by a particular group

   2. ( as modifier )

      a cult show

8. (modifier) of, relating to, or characteristic of a cult or cults

   a cult figure

cult

1. 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.)

The term cult often suggests extreme beliefs and bizarre behavior.

Other Word Forms

• cultic adjective
• cultual adjective
• cultish adjective
• anticult noun
• cultist noun
• cultism noun

Word 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

Word History and Origins

Origin of cult¹

C17: from Latin cultus cultivation, refinement, from colere to till

Example Sentences

“He’s almost building a cult,” said Aaron Cook, a 28-year-old plumber who was in the audience in Las Vegas.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

The film became a cult classic and many fans credited Dharmendra for its success, describing him as the "soul of Sholay".

Read more on BBC

Isgro scored another before half-time and has been something of a cult hero at the Stoop ever since, extending his contract in January.

Read more on BBC

In a spell of 24 deliveries, an introvert became a cult hero.

Read more on BBC

Generations of readers have turned its eponymous heroines into cult figures, but the March sisters are more than stereotypes.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• band 
• church 
• clan 
• clique 
• denomination 
• faith 
• religion 
• sect