illuminati

[ih-loo-muh-nah-tee, -ney-tahy]

plural noun, singular il·lu·mi·na·to [ih-loo-muh-nah-toh, -ney-] /ɪˌlu məˈnɑ toʊ, -ˈneɪ-/.

persons possessing, or claiming to possess, superior enlightenment.

(initial capital letter) a name given to different religious societies or sects because of their claim to superior enlightenment.

Origin of illuminati

1590–1600; < Latin illūminātī, plural of illūminātus enlightened; see illuminate

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

Related Words for illuminati

scholar, brain, sage, egghead, savant, genius, academic, whiz, philosopher, bluestocking, intelligentsia, academician, thinker, Einstein, illuminato, longhair

Examples from the Web for illuminati

Contemporary Examples of illuminati

As a noted feminist/ illuminati member/ Goddess/ walking Instagram video, Beyoncé certainly wears many hats/ veils/ body suits.
The Beyoncé Manifesto: Quotes on Nihilism and Feminism
Amy Zimmerman
December 12, 2014
She believes the Illuminati are leaving secret clues in, among other places, the viral Kony 2012 video.
The Kardashian Look-Alike Trolling for Assad
Noah Shachtman, Michael Kennedy
October 17, 2014
For example, a website accumulated all of my music videos to point out perceived Illuminati images.
DJ Steve Aoki: To Cake or Not To Cake
Steve Aoki
August 8, 2014
The symbol is sometimes associated with the Illuminati, but that same symbol also dates back to ancient Egypt.
Jay-Z Just Can’t Get Away From the Illuminati Rumors
Allison Samuels
March 13, 2013
Illuminati is the plural of illuminatus, which means “enlightened.”
Jay-Z Just Can’t Get Away From the Illuminati Rumors
Allison Samuels
March 13, 2013

Historical Examples of illuminati

The Illuminati, brothers and friends of Montgelas, have not been idle in that country.
Memoirs of the Court of St. Cloud, Complete
Lewis Goldsmith
Their pretension to all knowledge, acquired for them the title of Illuminati.
Mysticism and its Results
John Delafield
Of the other sects the most noteworthy was that of the Iluminados (Illuminati).
A History of Spain
Charles E. Chapman
Curses and persecution for the devil's offspring, the Illuminati, we swear!
Old Fritz and the New Era
Louise Muhlbach
I belong to the Illuminati, and mingle with the freethinkers.
Old Fritz and the New Era
Louise Muhlbach

British Dictionary definitions for illuminati

illuminati

pl n singular -to (-təʊ)

a group of persons claiming exceptional enlightenment on some subject, esp religion

Word Origin for illuminati

C16: from Latin, literally: the enlightened ones, from illūmināre to illuminate

Illuminati

pl n singular -to (-təʊ)

any of several groups of illuminati, esp in 18th-century France

a group of religious enthusiasts of 16th-century Spain who were persecuted by the Inquisition

a masonic sect founded in Bavaria in 1778 claiming that the illuminating grace of Christ resided in it alone

a rare name for the Rosicrucians

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 illuminati

1590s, plural of Latin illuminatus "enlightened" (in figurative sense), past participle of illuminare (see illumination). Originally applied to a 16c. Spanish sect (the Alumbrados), then to other sects; since 1797 used as a translation of German Illuminaten, name of a secret society founded 1776 in Ingolstadt, Bavaria, and holding deistic and republican principles; hence used generally of free-thinkers and sarcastically of those professing intellectual enlightenment (1816). Related: Illuminatism; illuminatist.