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The Overlap of Cults and Culture
Cult, which shares an origin with culture and cultivate, comes from the Latin cultus, a noun with meanings ranging from "tilling, cultivation" to "training or education" to "adoration." In English, cult has evolved a number of meanings following a fairly logical path. The earliest known uses of the word, recorded in the 17th century, broadly denoted "worship." From here cult came to refer to a specific branch of a religion or the rites and practices of that branch, as in "the cult of Dionysus." By the early 18th century, cult could refer to a non-religious admiration or devotion, such as to a person, idea, or fad ("the cult of success"). Finally, by the 19th century, the word came to be used of "a religion regarded as unorthodox or spurious."
Examples of cult in a Sentence
Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 5 Nov. 2024
The track comes from The Nightmare Before Christmas, the stop-motion claymation movie that’s become not just a cult classic, but a commercial success story every year.
—Hugh McIntyre, Forbes, 1 Nov. 2024
From transformative beauty essentials to game-changing home gear and the latest tech, these picks have been put to the test and earned their cult status among savvy shoppers.
—Mia Meltzer, Rolling Stone, 31 Oct. 2024
Scott’s 46-year-old daughter, director Jordan Scott, wrote and directed their recent adaptation of Nicholas Hogg’s psychological cult thriller A Sacrifice.
—James Hibberd, The Hollywood Reporter, 31 Oct. 2024
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Dictionary Entries Near cult
Cite this Entry
“Cult.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cult. Accessed 22 Nov. 2024.
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