ritual

American  

[rich-oo-uhl] / ˈrɪtʃ u əl /

noun

1. an established or prescribed procedure for a religious or other rite.

2. a system or collection of religious or other rites.

3. observance of set forms in public worship.

4. a book of rites or ceremonies.

5. a book containing the offices to be used by priests in administering the sacraments and for visitation of the sick, burial of the dead, etc.

6. a prescribed or established rite, ceremony, proceeding, or service.

   the ritual of the dead.

7. prescribed, established, or ceremonial acts or features collectively, as in religious services.

8. any practice or pattern of behavior regularly performed in a set manner.

9. a prescribed code of behavior regulating social conduct, as that exemplified by the raising of one's hat or the shaking of hands in greeting.

10. Psychiatry. a specific act, as hand-washing, performed repetitively to a pathological degree, occurring as a common symptom of obsessive-compulsive neurosis.

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adjective

1. of the nature of or practiced as a rite or ritual.

   a ritual dance.

   Synonyms:

   sacramental, formal, ceremonial

2. of or relating to rites or ritual.

   ritual laws.

ritual British  

/ ˈrɪtjʊəl /

noun

1. the prescribed or established form of a religious or other ceremony

2. such prescribed forms in general or collectively

3. stereotyped activity or behaviour

4. psychol any repetitive behaviour, such as hand-washing, performed by a person with a compulsive personality disorder

5. any formal act, institution, or procedure that is followed consistently

   the ritual of the law

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adjective

1. of, relating to, or characteristic of religious, social, or other rituals

Related Words

See ceremony.

Other Word Forms

• antiritual
  adjective
• proritual
  adjective
• ritually
  adverb
• unritual
  adjective
• unritually
  adverb

Etymology

Origin of ritual

First recorded in 1560–70; from Latin rītuālis, from rītu(s) rite + -ālis -al ¹

Explanation

A ritual is a ceremony or action performed in a customary way. Your family might have a Saturday night ritual of eating a big spaghetti dinner and then taking a long walk to the ice cream shop. As an adjective, ritual means "conforming to religious rites," which are the sacred, customary ways of celebrating a religion or culture. Different communities have different ritual practices, like meditation in Buddhism, or baptism in Christianity. We also call the ceremony itself a ritual. Although it comes from religious ceremonies, ritual can also be used for any time-honored tradition, like the Superbowl, or Mardi Gras, or Sunday morning pancake breakfast.

Example Sentences

The speech mixed humor and ritual with more conventional leadership framing, repeatedly returning to themes of endurance, responsibility and preparation for uncertainty in modern conflict.

From Salon • May 24, 2026

Across Los Angeles, fragrance clubs are transforming what was once a solo ritual into something communal.

From Los Angeles Times • May 19, 2026

“Instead of eating something on autopilot, you turn it into a small ritual, and over time that awareness starts to shape your everyday choices too,” she explains.

From Salon • May 17, 2026

This framing of ritual as technology—and civilization-defining technology at that—shapes Mr. Feiler’s argument throughout “A Time to Gather.”

From The Wall Street Journal • May 15, 2026

After that particular ritual was over, Oliver leaned down and pulled out the bag of cookies his mom had made for their family.

From "The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street" by Karina Yan Glaser

Related Words

• act
• custom
• formality
• habit
• liturgy
• observance
• practice
• procedure
• rite
• routine
• stereotype