Pharisaism
Americannoun
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the principles and practices of the Pharisees.
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(lowercase) rigid observance of external forms of religion or conduct without genuine piety; hypocrisy.
noun
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Judaism the tenets and customs of the Pharisees
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(often not capital) observance of the external forms of religion without genuine belief; hypocrisy
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of Pharisaism
From the New Latin word Pharisaismus, dating back to 1595–1605. See Pharisaic, -ism
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
His smirking and somewhat subversive accommodation to this Pharisaism is to emphasize the ways in which Black English is more complex than Standard English.
From The New Yorker ● May 8, 2017
Emphasis on visible authority and external practices had brought the Roman Catholic Church, they thought, to Pharisaism and travesty; they hoped to avoid the same pitfall by stressing an inward spirituality.
From Time Magazine Archive
It is clear that John was not a member of this holy community, which differed widely from the Pharisaism and Sadduceeism of the time.
From John the Baptist by F. B. (Frederick Brotherton) Meyer
He is independent without self-assertion, courageous without bravado, conscientious without Pharisaism.
From Twenty Years of Congress, Volume 2 From Lincoln to Garfield, with a Review of the Events Which Led to the Political Revolution of 1860 by James Gillespie Blaine
This is strong language, but not too strong considering the author's abhorrence of exclusiveness, separation, Pharisaism, and his identification of this with official religion.
From Recollections and Impressions 1822-1890 by Octavius Brooks Frothingham
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
