rite

[rahyt] /raɪt/
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.
Origin
1275-1325; Middle English (< Old French rit(e)) < Latin rītus
Related forms
riteless, adjective
ritelessness, noun
Can be confused
right, rite, wright, write.
Synonyms
1. observance, form, usage. See ceremony.
Examples from the web for rite
  • We should also acknowledge that losing professors need not be an inevitable rite of spring.
  • Traditional marriage has evolved from a near-universal rite to a luxury for the educated and affluent.
  • Hospital surgeries reduce the infection rate, but many boys opt for the old rite.
  • It is an annual rite that has sustained wildlife ranging from bears to bald eagles.
  • The driver's license is the initiation rite into adulthood.
  • The history begins with a moment-by-moment description of the rite of baptism.
  • The interim director job you had was that rite large.
  • In the next few months, colleges will be completing an annual rite of fall: naming search committees and appointing their leaders.
  • Marriage has two aspects: it is a religious rite, and it is a civil contract between two people.
  • Heating improves taste and texture of such dishes as fruit pies, rite puddings, and baked apples.
British Dictionary definitions for rite

rite

/raɪt/
noun
1.
a formal act or procedure prescribed or customary in religious ceremonies: fertility rites, the rite of baptism
2.
a particular body of such acts or procedures, esp of a particular Christian Church: the Latin rite
3.
a Christian Church: the Greek rite
Word Origin
C14: from Latin rītus religious ceremony
Word Origin and History for rite
n.

early 14c., from Latin ritus "religious observance or ceremony, custom, usage," perhaps from PIE root *re(i)- "to count, number" (cf. Greek arithmos "number," Old English rim "number;" see read (v.)). Rite of passage (1909) is translated from French rite de passage, coined by French anthropologist Arnold van Gennep (1873-1957).

Encyclopedia Article for rite

ritual

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.

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