denomination

[ dih-nom-uh-ney-shuhn ]

noun

1. a religious group, usually including many local churches, often larger than a sect:

   the Lutheran denomination.

2. one of the grades or degrees in a series of designations of quantity, value, measure, weight, etc.:

   He paid $500 in bills of small denomination.

3. a name or designation, especially one for a class of things.
4. a class or kind of persons or things distinguished by a specific name.
5. the act of naming or designating a person or thing.

denomination

/ dɪˌnɒmɪˈneɪʃən /

noun

1. a group having a distinctive interpretation of a religious faith and usually its own organization
2. a grade or unit in a series of designations of value, weight, measure, etc

   coins of this denomination are being withdrawn

3. a name given to a class or group; classification
4. the act of giving a name
5. a name; designation

Derived Forms

• deˌnomiˈnational, adjective
• deˌnomiˈnationally, adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of denomination¹

First recorded in 1400–50; Middle English denominacioun “name, designation; act of naming or designating,” from Latin dēnōminātiōn- (stem of dēnōminātiō “calling something by other than its proper name, substitution, metonymy,” equivalent to dēnōmināt(us) + -iōn-; denominate, -ion

Word History and Origins

Origin of denomination¹

C15: from Latin dēnōminātiō a calling by name; see denominate

Example Sentences

Murphy and his co-creators could have used any denomination's religious institutional hypocrisy, but the Catholic church is irresistibly theatrical and has a track record of sex scandals and being judgmental.

From Salon

Most of these apostles and prophets were untethered to any larger organization or denomination.

From Slate

The coin is thought to have been made by Royal Mint craftsmen before the 20p denomination was released into circulation in 1982.

From BBC

As a preacher in the independent charismatic tradition, a fast-growing offshoot of Pentecostalism that is unaffiliated with any major denomination, Wallnau and his acolytes believe that God speaks to and through modern-day apostles and prophets — a version of Christianity that Taylor, in his forthcoming book “The Violent Take It By Force,” describes as “the amorphous, tumultuous Wild West of the modern church.”

From Salon

It will be the first time that the largest Protestant denomination in America will ask representatives of its tens of thousands of member churches to consider such a proposal, according to Southern Baptist Convention officials.

From New York Times

Related Words

• church
• creed
• cult
• faith
• persuasion
• religion
• sect