Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- n. Worship of idols.
- n. Blind or excessive devotion to something.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- n. The worship of idols or images; more generally, the paying of divine honors to any created object; the ascription of divine power to natural agencies Idolatry exists in a variety of forms, as
- n. Immoderate veneration or love for any person or thing; admiration bordering on adoration.
Wiktionary
- n. The worship of idols.
- n. The admiration of somebody or something.
GNU Webster's 1913
- n. The worship of idols, images, or anything which is not God; the worship of false gods.
- n. Excessive attachment or veneration for anything; respect or love which borders on adoration.
WordNet 3.0
- n. the worship of idols; the worship of images that are not God
- n. religious zeal; the willingness to serve God
Etymologies
- From Old French idolatrie, ydolatrie, from Late Latin īdōlatrīa, from Ecclesiastical Latin īdōlolatrīa, from Ancient Greek εἰδωλολατρία (eidōlolatria, "worship of idols"), back-formation from εἰδωλολάτρης (eidōlolatrēs) (īdōlatra in Latin), from εἴδωλον (eidōlon, "idol") + λάτρις (latris, "worshipper") or λατρεύω (latreuō, "I worship"), from λάτρον (latron, "payment"); cognate with modern French idolâtrie, Italian idolatria, Occitan ydolatria, and Spanish idolatria. (Wiktionary)
- Middle English idolatrie, from Old French, from Latin īdōlolatrīa, from Greek eidōlolatreiā : eidōlon, idol; see idol + latreiā, service. (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)
Examples
“Such a confession is signified by the term idolatry, but not by the term heresy, which only means a false opinion.”
“The case was simply that there were a number of persons determined not to demand mere toleration for themselves, but to pluck down what they called idolatry everywhere and to keep the Edwardine service in the parish churches in defiance of all authority, and even of the feelings of their fellow parishioners.”
The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume 5: Diocese-Fathers of Mercy
“Today's 18-page treatise from the Vatican also slams what it calls the "idolatry of the market.”
“Hence "idolatry" is associated with them: and the covetous man is termed an "idolater" (Nu 25: 1, 2).”
“In the New Testament the term idolatry is used to designate covetousness (Matt.”
“Defeating the power-logic of idolatry, in other words, is the hardest thing in the world.”
“If she's saying that America is the New Israel, then I call idolatry on that.”
“Yahweh was the Creator, the only “true and living God,” and worship of any other deities was termed idolatry.”
“The late Nye Bevan once said, Quote ... in a democracy idolatry is the first sin.”
“Israel adopted, shall go back to the Assyrians, her teachers in idolatry, as the hire or fee for having taught it.”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘idolatry’.
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GRE Barrons Wordlist
A complete Barron's Wordlist for GRE preparation. Your online flashcard replacement.
abase, abash, abate, abbreviate, abdicate, aberrant, aberration, abet, abeyance, abhor, abject, abjure and 4087 more...
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Guide to the Perplexed
Lexicon of terms set forth in Maimonides 'Guide to the Perplexed'. A fascinating exercise in theosophy and translation if one substitutes these definitions for a "revised" reading of the Old Testa...
eye, apprehend, associations, air, ruah : or ruhoth,..., affection, attribute, approach, accidents, ascending, articulated, back and 119 more...
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Test Prep or Just for fun
Building a list for standardized test prep or just for learning some new words! Please add any words that you feel are important for the SAT/GRE/GMAT etc...
throng, morass, parley, facile, kismet, strife, jetsam, carrion, annex, harbinger, vestige, surreptitious and 575 more...
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GRE Barron's 800
abate, abdicate, aberrant, abeyance, abject, abjure, abscission, abscond, abstemious, abstinence, abysmal, accretion and 787 more...
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Interesting words
A list of words that are odd or words that I have looked up.
concupiscence, brize, scree, scoria, forestaff, spanaemia, valetudinarianism, distasture, pyrethrum, laudanum, gentian, bicameral and 11250 more...
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words 1
Traduce, Ramify, precipitous, rapture, adumbrate, knell, smolder, vagary, choleric, sibylline, hypocritical, jejune and 185 more...
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GRE 2014
abase, abate, abdicate, aberrant, abeyance, abhor, abjure, abortive, abound, abrasive, abreast, abridge and 1577 more...
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RELI - words with Biblical connotations
Words in the Bible evoking biblical stories or with special spiritual meaning. Proper names have been reduced to the minimum.
ark, judgement, holy, saint, baptism, spirit, love, eternal, altar, balsam, covenant, flood and 1115 more...
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RELI - words you immediately associat...
advent, almighty, altar, anoint, apostle, archangel, ark, Balaam, baptism, baptist, baptize, begotten and 341 more...
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religion
who is this god person, anyway? (--Douglas Adams)
sachristy, vestry, diocese, papal, cardinal, pope, polygamy, seven, father, chaplain, vestments, blessing and 227 more...
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If At First You Don't Succeed...
country, vestry, cabinetry, idolatry, entry, poultry, harlotry, banditry, pantry, sultry, conchyliometry, bathymetry
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the first list
an immense, grandiloquent list that loads like a thousand years sentence in stone. new words are in the other lists.
ridiculous, brummagem, predicament, sanctimonious, vapid, eschew, admonish, auspicious, capitulation, enumerate, lachrymose, tenet and 1648 more...
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reginaterra's Words
purl, blow, squish, andean, generality, adaptation, lush, pack, filter, acquiesce, abstraction, sweet and 508 more...
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tree's Words
aphasia, anhedonia, promontory, misandry, amanuensis, asymptote, penultimate, muslin, tundra, calico, kinaesthesia, rutabaga and 209 more...
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samuraizack's Words
floccinaucinihili..., pneumonoultramicr..., bombastic, existentialistic, velocipede, aglet, anatomical snuffbox, wonk, tang, funambulist, quakebuttock, flews and 390 more...
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ADW1
obdurate, obstinate, behest, injunction, enjoin, circumspect, ensconce, discursive, lugubrious, doleful, somber, ken and 2476 more...
Tweets
Looking for tweets for idolatry.
brobbins wrath, anger, jealousy Jul 23, 2009