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• sect
  sect

  noun

  a body of persons adhering to a particular religious faith; a religious denomination.
• -sect
  -sect

  a combining form with the meaning “cut,” used in the formation of compound words bisect, dissect, exsect .
• sect.
  sect.

  abbreviation

  section.

sect

¹ American  

[sekt] / sɛkt /

noun

• sects
  plural

1. a body of persons adhering to a particular religious faith; a religious denomination.

2. a group regarded as heretical or as deviating from a generally accepted religious tradition.

3. (in the sociology of religion) a Christian denomination characterized by insistence on strict qualifications for membership, as distinguished from the more inclusive groups called churches.

4. any group, party, or faction united by a specific doctrine or under a doctrinal leader.

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-sect ² American  

1. a combining form with the meaning “cut,” used in the formation of compound words bisect, dissect, exsect .

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sect. ³ American  

abbreviation

1. section.

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-sect ¹ British  

combining form

1. to cut or divide, esp into a specified number of parts

   trisect

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sect ² British  

/ sɛkt /

noun

1. a subdivision of a larger religious group (esp the Christian Church as a whole) the members of which have to some extent diverged from the rest by developing deviating beliefs, practices, etc

2. derogatory

   1. a schismatic religious body characterized by an attitude of exclusivity in contrast to the more inclusive religious groups called denominations or Churches

   2. a religious group regarded as extreme or heretical

3. a group of people with a common interest, doctrine, etc; faction

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sect Cultural  

1. A religious group, especially one that has separated from a larger group. Sect is often a term of disapproval.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• subsect
  noun
• undersect
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• sects
  plural

Etymology

Origin of sect¹

1300–50; Middle English secte < Latin secta something to follow, pathway, course of conduct, school of thought, probably noun derivative of sectārī to pursue, accompany, wait upon, frequentative of sequī to follow

Origin of -sect²

From Latin sectus, past participle of secāre “to cut”

Explanation

A sect is a religious group that exists inside of a larger religion. Think of it as a section of a particular religion. Although objectively speaking a sect is merely a subdivision of a larger religious group, the word often carries with it the feeling of a part of a religion that has broken away. It often has a negative connotation in English because it implies that the group departed from what was standard to believe something different or odd. If you are comparing two sects you might talk about their sectarian differences.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

sect -sect sect. sects

Unlike their Arab Sunni neighbors, Omanis belong to the Ibadite sect, an early secession from mainstream Islam known for its moderate and egalitarian tendencies.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 2, 2026

Wednesday's decision means liquidation proceedings will begin and the sect will no longer benefit from tax exemption, although the group can still appeal to the top court.

From Barron's ● Mar. 4, 2026

The second of eight children in a religious family, his father was a mid-ranking cleric from the Shia branch of Islam, the dominant sect in Iran.

From BBC ● Feb. 28, 2026

The narrative begins with a religious ritual that situates her as a member of Syria’s minority Alawite sect, a variant of Shi’a Islam.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 24, 2026

He was cared for by a group of Jansenists, Catholics who belonged to a sect based largely on a hatred of the Jesuit order.

From "Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea" by Charles Seife

Palmatifid, -lobed, -sect, palmately cleft, or lobed, or divided.

From The Elements of Botany For Beginners and For Schools by Asa Gray

“His followers go along with what he says as if they were members of a sect. If he says it’s no problem to go out, people believe him,” Marino said.

From The Guardian ● May 8, 2020

See his Second Book on Epidemics, sect. ii.

From An Account of the Diseases which were most frequent in the British military hospitals in Germany by Donald Monro

There is a good abstract respecting them in Jahn's Hebrew Antiquities, sect. 92-96.

From Notes and Queries, Number 38, July 20, 1850 by Various

Sicanians and Sicilians were anciently two distinct people.—Trans.619.Diod. l. xiv. p. 268-278.620.Triremes.621.Honos alit artes.622.The curious reader will find a very particular account of it in book xxii. art. ii. sect. ii.—Trans.623.Diod. l. xiv. p. 279-295.

From The Ancient History of the Egyptians, Carthaginians, Assyrians, Babylonians, Medes and Persians, Macedonians and Grecians (Vol. 1 of 6) by Charles Rollin

The Dream, sect. viii. lines 3, 4, vide ante, p.

From The Works of Lord Byron. Vol. 4 by Ernest Hartley Coleridge

Its tens of thousands of active-duty soldiers reflect the mosaic that is the country, with representation from all sects.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 9, 2026

"All sects used to celebrate with us, and we hope to see this in the coming years, in order to rebuild Syria," she added.

From Barron's ● Dec. 24, 2025

He hopes Syria's mosaic of religions and sects can hold together.

From BBC ● Nov. 10, 2025

In the end, wrote Burger, the track record of the Amish in maintaining alternative modes of informal vocational education was a showing “that probably few other religious groups or sects could make.”

From Slate ● Jul. 1, 2025

Most of the stores were run by gentiles, but some were owned by Orthodox Jews, members of the Hasidic sects in the area.

From "The Chosen" by Chaim Potok

Related Words

• church
• creed
• cult
• denomination
• faction
• faith
• religion