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.

Origin of cult

1610–20; < Latin cultus habitation, tilling, refinement, worship, equivalent to cul-, variant stem of colere to inhabit, till, worship + -tus suffix of v. action

Related formscul·tic, cul·tu·al

[kuhl-choo-uh l] /ˈkʌl tʃu əl/, adjectivecult·ish, adjectivean·ti·cult, noun, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for cultish

Contemporary Examples of cultish

I returned the sneakers to their boxes, slightly less perplexed by their cultish appeal.
Summer’s Ugliest Trend? Sneaker Wedges Should Be Banned!
Isabel Wilkinson
May 30, 2012
Chatwin's books—he published a precious six in his brief career—no longer enjoy the cultish following that they once did.
The Enigmatic Nomad
Kirk Davis Swinehart
February 26, 2011
But if Bublé has an underground, cultish following that are his most hard-core, devoted fans, it's moms.
Bublé the Vampire Slayer
Nicole LaPorte
October 23, 2009

British Dictionary definitions for cultish

cultish

culty (ˈkʌltɪ)

adjective

intended to appeal to a small group of fashionable people

Derived Formscultishly, adverb

cult

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 activitythe 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 cultsa cult figure

Derived Formscultism, nouncultist, noun

Word Origin for cult

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

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for cultish

cult

1610s, "worship," also "a particular form of worship," from French culte (17c.), from Latin cultus "care, labor; cultivation, culture; worship, reverence," originally "tended, cultivated," past participle of colere "to till" (see colony). Rare after 17c.; revived mid-19c. with reference to ancient or primitive rituals. Meaning "devotion to a person or thing" is from 1829.

Cult. An organized group of people, religious or not, with whom you disagree. [Rawson]

Culture definitions for cultish

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.)

Note

The term cult often suggests extreme beliefs and bizarre behavior.