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nonsectarian

nonsectarian

2 6.9
Open to people of any religion or political party
  • adjective
  • /ˌnɒn.sɛkˈtɛr.i.ən/
translation icon : no sectario
  • Founded in 1854, it is a nonsectarian, coeducational, privately controlled, and state-aided college of liberal arts.
  • nonsectarian school
  • nonsectarian colleges
  • nonsectarian invocation

Examples

  • The practice of including nonsectarian invocations in public school graduation ceremonies was held to be constitutional.

    Academic text (1991)
  • The amendment was necessary to ensure that prayer and Bible reading were allowed "under proper nonsectarian conditions in public education."

    Academic text (1991)
  • The women of the Council also had more time and resources that could be used for nonsectarian causes.

    Academic text (2003)
  • Brandeis University is a private, coeducational, and nonsectarian institution of higher learning and research.

    Academic text (1993)
  • In 1990, Wisconsin enacted legislation allowing a limited number of Milwaukee children to receive educational vouchers redeemable at nonsectarian private schools.

    Academic text (1992)
  • Keep the invocation nonsectarian and emphasize the legitimate secular purpose of creating an atmosphere of solemnity for this rite of passage.

    Academic text (1991)
  • The influential thinkers of the nineteenth century continued the process of replacing orthodox Christian institutions and dogmas with various nonsectarian spiritual perspectives.

    Academic text (1993)
  • Thus, in December 1967, Najjar and thirty-six Arab-Americans formed a nonsectarian organization with two goals: to promote an understanding of "the Arab case" to the American public, and to solidify "ties amongst Arab Americans of potential benefit to the Arab world."

    Academic text (2018)
  • When asked which objectives they "considered to be essential or very important," 70.3 percent of freshman women at nonsectarian four-year colleges checked off "raising a family," compared to 76.5 percent at Catholic colleges and 73.8 percent at other religious colleges.

    Academic text (2003)
  • Brandeis University is a private, coeducational, and nonsectarian institution of higher learning and research.

Synonyms

nondenominational
vsnonsectarian
5 7.2

Does not belong to any single religious group

is broader covering freedom from ties to sects parties or schools
nonideological
vsnonsectarian
1 6.8

Not based on any particular political or religious beliefs

is concerned with lack of sect or party affiliation rather than ideology
unsectarian
vsnonsectarian
8.1

Open to people of all religions and groups

is the neutral sense of not being tied to one sect or party
nondoctrinal
vsnonsectarian
8.1

Not following a group's official beliefs

focuses on absence of sect or party ties instead of doctrinal basis
nondoctrinaire
vsnonsectarian
8.2

Open to new ideas and willing to change views

emphasizes lack of group affiliation rather than personal openness
nondogmatic
vsnonsectarian
7.5

Open to different ideas and willing to change views

stresses not being tied to a sect or party rather than attitude
undogmatic
vsnonsectarian
7.8

Open to different beliefs and ideas

highlights absence of group association more than personal flexibility
latitudinarian
vsnonsectarian
9.9

Being open to different religious opinions and practices

is about being open to all groups rather than actively rejecting authority

Antonyms

37 7.7

About a religious or political group and showing strong support for its beliefs

How Sectarian

partisan
363 6.7
sectarian
37 7.7
nonsectarian
2 6.9
inclusive
88 4.1

Surface Forms

nonsectarian positive

Morphology

nonsectarian = sectarian (transparent) = non + sect + arian

Meaning is directly formed by the negation prefix 'non-' applied to the adjective 'sectarian', yielding 'not sectarian'.

Etymology

Nonsectarian is built from non- ('not') and sect ('group' or 'part'). Think of section to remember sect, because it means a 'part'. So nonsectarian describes something 'not tied to one group', like a school or charity that welcomes people of different beliefs.