“Cult” is an adjective with three lexical meanings. All of them are explained to one degree or another by the etymology of the term - it came from the noun "cult", which means the deification of something, worship, worship, the creation of special rites and rituals for this. However, all three values are distinct from each other, and they need to be considered separately.
Historical meaning
Literally, “cult” is a definition under which an object of worship or an element of the ritual associated with this worship is suitable. For example, we can say that the church is a religious building, since any religion is a kind of cult, and worship of a god or gods is its element.
Most of the ancient structures, such as, for example, the famous Egyptian pyramids, can also be considered cult. Only in this case it is not a religious cult, but a totalitarian one - the cult of the pharaoh, king, emperor, leader. Unless, of course, not take into account the fact that the pharaoh in ancient Egypt was equated with a deity.
Figuratively
In modern society, one rarely encounters real cults with rituals and rituals. However, there are still people and works of art, known and respected enough to form a special level of reverence and admiration around them. This can be, for example, a talented politician, an interesting film, a best-selling novel or an expensive picture. Such things can be called cult.
Here are some examples of how to use the word "cult" in this meaning:
- The Titanic with Leonardo di Caprio is a cult romantic tragedy.
- Elon Musk is a cult person whose name is known to millions of people.
- Harry Potter is a cult book that has grown over several generations.
In this case, the word "cult" is something close in meaning to "legendary", "known to all," "recognized around the world."
In narrow circles
Despite the fact that it is impossible to consider small groups of people of interest to be full-fledged cults or even something close to them, the adjective "cult" in their respect still took root. So they say something very famous in relatively small groups of people. For instance:
- Spider-Man is a cult character among Marvel comic book fans.
- John Tolkien is a cult author in the fantasy genre.
That is, this meaning of the word "cult" implies that the named character, artist or author may not be the idol of millions, but be considered a legend in certain groups of people.