sec·tar·i·an
sek-ˈter-ē-ən 
1
: of, relating to, or characteristic of a sect or sectarian
2
: limited in character or scope : parochial
1
: an adherent of a sect
2
: a narrow or bigoted person
Synonyms
Examples of sectarian in a Sentence
Adjective
The country was split along sectarian lines.
there are people on both the left and the right who have staked out unyielding sectarian positions in this debate
Noun
charged that the work of Congress has been stymied by sectarians who are indifferent to reason and intolerant of compromise
Recent Examples on the Web
Harmeet Kaur, CNN, 15 Apr. 2024
During and after the 30 years of sectarian violence in Northern Ireland, known as the Troubles, the Palestinians’ struggle for liberation was seen by its residents through the prism of their own conflict.
—Eoin McSweeney, CNN, 29 Mar. 2024
The ancient Hindu festival eschews the religious, societal, caste and political divisions that underpin India’s often sectarian society.
—Hari Kumar, New York Times, 22 Mar. 2024
The decades of sectarian bloodshed over Northern Ireland, known as the Troubles, had many backstories before peace accords were reached in 1998 to mostly end the fighting that claimed more than 3,500 lives.
—Brian Murphy, Washington Post, 20 Mar. 2024
Ireland and Northern Ireland also have a close working relationship in business, despite sectarian troubles in the past.
—The Arizona Republic, 17 Mar. 2024
But such a war would pit a Shiite alliance in the north against Sunni forces in the south, inflaming sectarian rivalries and drawing in jihadists from other countries.
—Robert F. Worth, The Atlantic, 5 Mar. 2024
Detective Inspector Deehan, noting both the freshness of the body and its geographic location — near the border of County Tyrone, a sectarian hot spot during the Troubles — said investigators consulted with the commission examining cases of the Disappeared when the body was first discovered.
—Ali Watkins, New York Times, 29 Feb. 2024
Shaw left Kashmir as a teenager in the early 1990s, after sectarian violence flared.
—Sebastian Smee, Washington Post, 1 Mar. 2024
Foreign Affairs, 22 May 2015
Both sides insist the other initiated the initial volley of gunfire that killed four agents and six sectarians.
—Joshua Alston, Variety, 12 Apr. 2023
Quite the contrary, the image of the cross makes the war memorial sectarian.
—Robert Barnes, Anchorage Daily News, 20 June 2019
Lebanon’s unique sectarian make up and place in the region make its politics about local issues like jobs, infrastructure, and garbage collection as well as about regional rivalries and alliances.
—Ben Hubbard, BostonGlobe.com, 7 May 2018
And so, there was the odd spectacle of the Irish Times religion reporter, Patsy McGarry, ringing in the 2016 with an editorial suggesting that Rising leaders Patrick Pearse and James Connolly were poisonous Catholic sectarians.
—Michael Brendan Dougherty, National Review, 1 Nov. 2017
As a result, Sunni sectarians across the region concluded that Obama’s United States was on the side of the Shia.
—Graeme Wood, The Atlantic, 21 May 2017
Adjective
Rana, the chief of police, could be seen as a stand-in for bureaucrats and administrators who critics accuse of emboldening extremists and stoking sectarian violence.
—Harmeet Kaur, CNN, 15 Apr. 2024
During and after the 30 years of sectarian violence in Northern Ireland, known as the Troubles, the Palestinians’ struggle for liberation was seen by its residents through the prism of their own conflict.
—Eoin McSweeney, CNN, 29 Mar. 2024
The ancient Hindu festival eschews the religious, societal, caste and political divisions that underpin India’s often sectarian society.
—Hari Kumar, New York Times, 22 Mar. 2024
The decades of sectarian bloodshed over Northern Ireland, known as the Troubles, had many backstories before peace accords were reached in 1998 to mostly end the fighting that claimed more than 3,500 lives.
—Brian Murphy, Washington Post, 20 Mar. 2024
Ireland and Northern Ireland also have a close working relationship in business, despite sectarian troubles in the past.
—The Arizona Republic, 17 Mar. 2024
But such a war would pit a Shiite alliance in the north against Sunni forces in the south, inflaming sectarian rivalries and drawing in jihadists from other countries.
—Robert F. Worth, The Atlantic, 5 Mar. 2024
Detective Inspector Deehan, noting both the freshness of the body and its geographic location — near the border of County Tyrone, a sectarian hot spot during the Troubles — said investigators consulted with the commission examining cases of the Disappeared when the body was first discovered.
—Ali Watkins, New York Times, 29 Feb. 2024
Shaw left Kashmir as a teenager in the early 1990s, after sectarian violence flared.
—Sebastian Smee, Washington Post, 1 Mar. 2024
Noun
People want to get rid of religious parties, people want to put sectarians behind to build an Iraq for all Iraqis.
—Foreign Affairs, 22 May 2015
Both sides insist the other initiated the initial volley of gunfire that killed four agents and six sectarians.
—Joshua Alston, Variety, 12 Apr. 2023
Quite the contrary, the image of the cross makes the war memorial sectarian.
—Robert Barnes, Anchorage Daily News, 20 June 2019
Lebanon’s unique sectarian make up and place in the region make its politics about local issues like jobs, infrastructure, and garbage collection as well as about regional rivalries and alliances.
—Ben Hubbard, BostonGlobe.com, 7 May 2018
And so, there was the odd spectacle of the Irish Times religion reporter, Patsy McGarry, ringing in the 2016 with an editorial suggesting that Rising leaders Patrick Pearse and James Connolly were poisonous Catholic sectarians.
—Michael Brendan Dougherty, National Review, 1 Nov. 2017
As a result, Sunni sectarians across the region concluded that Obama’s United States was on the side of the Shia.
—Graeme Wood, The Atlantic, 21 May 2017
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'sectarian.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Sectarian.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sectarian. Accessed 23 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
sectarian
1 of 2 adjective
sec·tar·i·an
sek-ˈter-ē-ən
1
: of, relating to, or characteristic of a sect or sectarian
2
: not willing to consider other points of view
a sectarian mind
sectarian
2 of 2 noun1
: a member of a sect
2
: a person who won't consider the ideas or opinions of others
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