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rite

 - 4 dictionary results

rite

  [rahyt]
–noun
1. a formal or ceremonial act or procedure prescribed or customary in religious or other solemn use: rites of baptism; sacrificial rites.
2. a particular form or system of religious or other ceremonial practice: the Roman rite.
3. (often initial capital letter) one of the historical versions of the Eucharistic service: the Anglican Rite.
4. (often initial capital letter) liturgy.
5. (sometimes initial capital letter) Eastern Church, Western Church. a division or differentiation of churches according to liturgy.
6. any customary observance or practice: the rite of afternoon tea.
Use rite in a Sentence
Origin:
1275–1325; ME (< OF rit(e)) < L rītus

Related forms:
riteless, adjective
rite⋅less⋅ness, noun

Synonyms:
1. observance, form, usage. See ceremony.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2010.
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rite   (rīt)   
n.  

  1. The prescribed or customary form for conducting a religious or other solemn ceremony: the rite of baptism.

  2. A ceremonial act or series of acts: fertility rites.

  3. Rite The liturgy or practice of a branch of the Christian church.


[Middle English, from Latin rītus; see ar- in Indo-European roots.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

rite 
c.1315, from L. ritus "religious observance or ceremony, custom, usage," perhaps from PIE base *re(i)- "to count, number" (cf. Gk. arithmos "number," O.E. rim "number"). Rite of passage (1909) is transl. from Fr. rite de passage, coined by Fr. anthropologist Arnold van Gennep (1873–1957).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Encyclopedia

rite

the performance of ceremonial acts prescribed by tradition or by sacerdotal decree. Ritual is a specific, observable mode of behaviour exhibited by all known societies. It is thus possible to view ritual as a way of defining or describing humans.

Learn more about rite with a free trial on Britannica.com.

Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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