| a screen or mat covered with a dark material for shielding a camera lens from excess light or glare. |
| an extraordinary or unusual thing, person, or event; an exceptional example or instance. |
In anthropology, an organization for the conduct of ritual, magical, or other religious observances. Many so-called primitive tribes, for example, have ancestor cults, in which dead ancestors are considered divine and activities are organized to respect their memory and invoke their aid. A cult is also a religious group held together by a dominant, often charismatic individual, or by the worship of a divinity, an idol, or some other object. (See animism, fetish, and totemism.)
Note: The term cult often suggests extreme beliefs and bizarre behavior.