as in parochial
not broad or open in views or opinions
there are people on both the left and the right who have staked out unyielding sectarian positions in this debate
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in partisan
one who stubbornly or intolerantly adheres to his or her own opinions and prejudices
charged that the work of Congress has been stymied by sectarians who are indifferent to reason and intolerant of compromise
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in bigotry
stubborn or intolerant adherence to one's opinions or prejudices
an ideological sectarianism that prevented the political party from ever being anything more than a fringe group
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of sectarian
Tricia Escobedo, CNN, 17 Mar. 2025
If a site is damaged or vandalized, the group will repair it themselves, hoping to avoid an escalation into sectarian conflict between the Christian community and their Sunni neighbors.
—Chris Massaro, Fox News, 23 Mar. 2025
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
See All Example Sentences for sectarian
Adjective
The attacks on the village, where swathes of farmland surround small clusters of buildings, reveal fresh details about the intensity of some of the sectarian violence that swept Syria’s coast earlier this month.
—Tricia Escobedo, CNN, 17 Mar. 2025
If a site is damaged or vandalized, the group will repair it themselves, hoping to avoid an escalation into sectarian conflict between the Christian community and their Sunni neighbors.
—Chris Massaro, Fox News, 23 Mar. 2025
Noun
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
See All Example Sentences for sectarian
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sectarian
Adjective
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The plum political prize, of course, will be deciding how congressional districts are drawn, perhaps giving this parochial court a major say in which party—and its preferred Speaker—gets to run the U.S. House.—
Philip Elliott,
Time,
31 Mar. 2025
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There is nothing more parochial or bland than being a soft, white Anglican kid from Ottawa.—
Graydon Carter,
The Atlantic,
14 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Image In Davao, Mr. Duterte remains widely popular, remembered for cracking down on problems like drugs, petty crime and violence.—
Aie Balagtas See,
New York Times,
5 Apr. 2025
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Where Hub once pursued petty criminals, he’s now charged with rounding up escaped demons by the Devil himself.—
Alison Herman,
Variety,
3 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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The Braves aren’t even one-sixteenth into their season, and a nine-game sample is much too small to provide an accurate predictor of where a team will end up.—
Peter Sblendorio,
New York Daily News,
7 Apr. 2025
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For anyone doing this for the first time, do be warned this station is extremely small with just six ticket barriers in total.—
Caoimhe O'Neill,
New York Times,
7 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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The narrow five-game spread between the top and bottom performers illustrates the relative consistency in baseline predictive ability.—
Giovanni Malloy,
Forbes.com,
8 Apr. 2025
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Any migrant can individually bring a claim, Harris argued, but only in Texas where they're being held, and only along narrower grounds.—
Maureen Groppe,
USA Today,
7 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Sectarian.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sectarian. Accessed 18 Apr. 2025.
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