Dictionary.com
definitions
  • synonyms

culture

[kuhl-cher]
See more synonyms for culture on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. the quality in a person or society that arises from a concern for what is regarded as excellent in arts, letters, manners, scholarly pursuits, etc.
  2. that which is excellent in the arts, manners, etc.
  3. a particular form or stage of civilization, as that of a certain nation or period: Greek culture.
  4. development or improvement of the mind by education or training.
  5. the behaviors and beliefs characteristic of a particular social, ethnic, or age group: the youth culture; the drug culture.
  6. Anthropology. the sum total of ways of living built up by a group of human beings and transmitted from one generation to another.
  7. Biology.
    1. the cultivation of microorganisms, as bacteria, or of tissues, for scientific study, medicinal use, etc.
    2. the product or growth resulting from such cultivation.
  8. the act or practice of cultivating the soil; tillage.
  9. the raising of plants or animals, especially with a view to their improvement.
  10. the product or growth resulting from such cultivation.
Show More
verb (used with object), cul·tured, cul·tur·ing.
  1. to subject to culture; cultivate.
  2. Biology.
    1. to grow (microorganisms, tissues, etc.) in or on a controlled or defined medium.
    2. to introduce (living material) into a culture medium.
Show More

Origin of culture

1400–50; late Middle English: tilling, place tilled (< Anglo-French) < Latin cultūra. See cult, -ure
Related formsan·ti·cul·ture, nounin·ter·cul·ture, adjectivein·ter·cul·ture, nounmul·ti·cul·ture, nounnon·cul·ture, nounpre·cul·ture, nounsu·per·cul·ture, noun

Synonyms

See more synonyms for culture on Thesaurus.com
4. See education.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for cultures

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples

British Dictionary definitions for cultures

culture

noun
  1. the total of the inherited ideas, beliefs, values, and knowledge, which constitute the shared bases of social action
  2. the total range of activities and ideas of a group of people with shared traditions, which are transmitted and reinforced by members of the groupthe Mayan culture
  3. a particular civilization at a particular period
  4. the artistic and social pursuits, expression, and tastes valued by a society or class, as in the arts, manners, dress, etc
  5. the enlightenment or refinement resulting from these pursuits
  6. the attitudes, feelings, values, and behaviour that characterize and inform society as a whole or any social group within ityob culture
  7. the cultivation of plants, esp by scientific methods designed to improve stock or to produce new ones
  8. stockbreeding the rearing and breeding of animals, esp with a view to improving the strain
  9. the act or practice of tilling or cultivating the soil
  10. biology
    1. the experimental growth of microorganisms, such as bacteria and fungi, in a nutrient substance (culture medium), usually under controlled conditionsSee also culture medium
    2. a group of microorganisms grown in this way
Show More
verb (tr)
  1. to cultivate (plants or animals)
  2. to grow (microorganisms) in a culture medium
Show More
Derived Formsculturist, nouncultureless, adjective

Word Origin

C15: from Old French, from Latin cultūra a cultivating, from colere to till; see cult
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 cultures

culture

n.

mid-15c., "the tilling of land," from Middle French culture and directly from Latin cultura "a cultivating, agriculture," figuratively "care, culture, an honoring," from past participle stem of colere "tend, guard, cultivate, till" (see cult). The figurative sense of "cultivation through education" is first attested c.1500. Meaning "the intellectual side of civilization" is from 1805; that of "collective customs and achievements of a people" is from 1867.

For without culture or holiness, which are always the gift of a very few, a man may renounce wealth or any other external thing, but he cannot renounce hatred, envy, jealousy, revenge. Culture is the sanctity of the intellect. [William Butler Yeats]

Slang culture vulture is from 1947. Culture shock first recorded 1940.

Show More
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
cultures in Medicine

culture

(kŭl′chər)
n.
  1. The growing of microorganisms, tissue cells, or other living matter in a specially prepared nutrient medium.
  2. Such a growth or colony, as of bacteria.
Show More
v.
  1. To grow microorganisms or other living matter in a specially prepared nutrient medium.
  2. To use a substance as a medium for culture.
Show More
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
cultures in Science

culture

[kŭl′chər]
Noun
  1. A growth of microorganisms, viruses, or tissue cells in a specially prepared nutrient medium under supervised conditions.
  2. The totality of socially transmitted behavior patterns, arts, beliefs, institutions, and all other products of human work and thought. Culture is learned and shared within social groups and is transmitted by nongenetic means.
Show More
Verb
  1. To grow microorganisms, viruses, or tissue cells in a nutrient medium.
Show More
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
cultures in Culture

culture

The sum of attitudes, customs, and beliefs that distinguishes one group of people from another. Culture is transmitted, through language, material objects, ritual, institutions, and art, from one generation to the next.

Show More

Note

Anthropologists consider that the requirements for culture (language use, tool making, and conscious regulation of sex) are essential features that distinguish humans from other animals.

Note

Culture also refers to refined music, art, and literature; one who is well versed in these subjects is considered “cultured.”
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.