ritual
/'ritjuəl/
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
Noun:
- A religious or solemn ceremony consisting of a series of actions performed according to a prescribed order: A formal procedure that is always performed in the same way, especially as part of a religious or traditional practice.
- A sequence of activities involving gestures, words, and objects, performed in a sequestered place and according to set sequence: This emphasizes the structured, often symbolic, nature of the actions.
- Any customary observance or practice: A procedure that is regularly followed, often in a fixed, repetitive manner, not necessarily religious.
Adjective:
- Relating to or done as a religious or solemn rite: Describes something that is part of or characteristic of a ritual.
- Done or carried out in a fixed, repetitive, or ceremonial way: Describes actions that are habitually performed in the same manner, often with a sense of formality.
Usage Examples
- Noun:
- The ritual of the morning tea ceremony is very precise. (The formal, prescribed procedure for the morning tea ceremony is very precise.)
- Making coffee became a comforting daily ritual. (Making coffee became a comforting, regularly repeated practice.)
- Adjective:
- The tribe performed a ritual dance to honor their ancestors. (The tribe performed a dance that is part of their traditional religious ceremony.)
- His ritual morning run never varied, regardless of the weather. (His fixed, habitual morning run never changed.)
Advanced Usage
- "To become a ritual": To develop into a fixed, customary practice.
- Their weekly meetings have become a ritual. (Their weekly meetings have become a fixed, customary practice.)
- "Empty ritual": A practice that is performed mechanically, having lost its original meaning or significance.
- The handshake was just an empty ritual, with no real warmth behind it. (The handshake was just a mechanical formality.)
Variants and Related Words
- Ritualistic (adj): Characterized by or adhering to ritual. Often implies excessive or rigid adherence to rituals.
- His approach to the task was almost ritualistic. (His approach was characterized by a fixed, ceremonial procedure.)
- Ritualize (verb): To make something into a ritual; to perform an action as a ritual.
- They ritualized the act of sharing a meal. (They turned the act of sharing a meal into a formal ceremony.)
- Rite (noun): A religious or other solemn ceremony or act. Often used interchangeably with "ritual," but a "rite" can refer to a single, specific ceremonial act within a larger ritual.
Synonyms
- Ceremony: A formal religious or public occasion, typically celebrating a particular event or anniversary.
- Rite: A religious or other solemn ceremony or act.
- Custom: A traditional and widely accepted way of behaving or doing something that is specific to a particular society, place, or time.
- Formality: The rigid observance of rules or convention.
Related Phrases
- Ritual cleansing: A ceremonial act of purification.
- The ritual cleansing was required before entering the temple.
- Ritual sacrifice: The act of offering something, often an animal, to a deity as part of a religious ceremony.
- Archaeologists found evidence of ancient ritual sacrifice.
Idioms
- "As regular as a ritual": Extremely regular and predictable.
- He visits his mother every Sunday, as regular as a ritual. (He visits with the predictable regularity of a ceremonial practice.)
Adjective
- of or relating to or employed in social rites or rituals
- a ritual dance of Haiti
- sedate little colonial tribe with its ritual tea parties- Nadine Gordimer
- of or relating to or characteristic of religious rituals
- ritual killing
Noun
- stereotyped behavior
- the prescribed procedure for conducting religious ceremonies
- any customary observance or practice