/ kʌlt; NAmE / noun , adjective
■ noun
1.
[ usually sing. ] cult (of sth) a way of life, an attitude, an idea, etc. that has become very popular :
the cult of physical fitness
An extraordinary personality cult had been created around the leader.
2.
a small group of people who have extreme religious beliefs and who are not part of any established religion :
Their son ran away from home and joined a cult.
3.
( formal ) a system of religious beliefs and practices :
the Chinese cult of ancestor worship
■ adjective
[ only before noun ] very popular with a particular group of people; treating sb/sth as a cult figure, etc. :
a cult movie / book
The singer has become a cult figure in America.
The cartoon has achieved cult status .
The TV series has a cult following among young people.
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WORD ORIGIN
early 17th cent. (originally denoting homage paid to a divinity): from French culte or Latin cultus worship, from cult- inhabited, cultivated, worshipped, from the verb colere .