Sect

5 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Sect \Sect\ (s[e^]kt), n. [L. secare, sectum, to cut.]
     A cutting; a scion. [Obs.] --Shak.
     [1913 Webster]

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:



  Sect \Sect\ (s[e^]kt), n. [F. secte, L. secta, fr. sequi to
     follow; often confused with L. secare, sectum, to cut. See
     {Sue} to follow, and cf. {Sept}, {Suit}, n.]
     Those following a particular leader or authority, or attached
     to a certain opinion; a company or set having a common belief
     or allegiance distinct from others; in religion, the
     believers in a particular creed, or upholders of a particular
     practice; especially, in modern times, a party dissenting
     from an established church; a denomination; in philosophy,
     the disciples of a particular master; a school; in society
     and the state, an order, rank, class, or party.
     [1913 Webster]
  
           He beareth the sign of poverty,
           And in that sect our Savior saved all mankind. --Piers
                                                    Plowman.
     [1913 Webster]
  
           As of the sect of which that he was born,
           He kept his lay, to which that he was sworn. --Chaucer.
     [1913 Webster]
  
           The cursed sect of that detestable and false prophet
           Mohammed.                                --Fabyan.
     [1913 Webster]
  
           As concerning this sect [Christians], we know that
           everywhere it is spoken against.         --Acts xxviii.
                                                    22.
     [1913 Webster]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  sect
       n 1: a subdivision of a larger religious group [syn: {religious
            sect}, {religious order}]
       2: a dissenting clique [syn: {faction}]

From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 [moby-thes]:

  62 Moby Thesaurus words for "sect":
     Babi, Babism, Bahaism, Brahmanism, Brahmoism, Buddhism,
     Chen Yen Buddhism, Christianity, adherents, affiliation,
     anthroposophy, body, branch, breakaway group, cabal, camp, caucus,
     church, class, clique, communion, community, confession,
     connection, creed, cult, denomination, disciples, division,
     ethnic group, faction, faith, fellowship, followers, group,
     interest, interest group, ism, minority group, offshoot, order,
     organization, party, persuasion, political party, pressure group,
     religious order, schism, school, school of thought, sectarism,
     segment, set, side, silent majority, society, splinter,
     splinter group, variety, version, vocal minority, wing
  
  

From Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary [easton]:

  Sect
     (Gr. hairesis, usually rendered "heresy", Acts 24:14; 1 Chr.
     11:19; Gal. 5:20, etc.), meaning properly "a choice," then "a
     chosen manner of life," and then "a religious party," as the
     "sect" of the Sadducees (Acts 5:17), of the Pharisees (15:5),
     the Nazarenes, i.e., Christians (24:5). It afterwards came to be
     used in a bad sense, of those holding pernicious error,
     divergent forms of belief (2 Pet. 2:1; Gal. 5:20).