conventicle

con·ven·ti·cle
C3O1N1V4E1N1T1I1C3L1E1
UK/kənˈvɛntɪk(ə)l/US/kənˈvɛn(t)ək(ə)l/

noun

A secret, unauthorized or illegal religious meeting.

Similar
meetinghouse
OriginMiddle English conventicle ← Latin conventiculum ← Proto-Indo-European *ḱóm →
Scrabble 18
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Meanings

nounconventicle (plural conventicles)

plural conventicles

  1. A secret, unauthorized or illegal religious meeting.

    If publique Aſſemblies of Divines cannot agree upon a right vvay, private Conventicles of illeterate men, vvill ſoon finde a vvrong. Bivious demurres breed devious reſolutions. Paſſengers to heaven are in haſte, and vvill vvalk one vvay or other.

    1647, Theodore de la Guard [pseudonym; Nathaniel Ward], The Simple Cobler of Aggawam in America. […], London: […] J[ohn] D[ever] & R[obert] I[bbitson] for Stephen Bowtell, […], →OCLC, page 37
    2 more examples

    [I]f when Luther firſt began to teach new doctrine, the catholiks at that time had not vouchſafed to giue him the hering, but had auoided his prechings & preuy couenticles, ther had not bin now in the worlde, either Lutheran, Swinglian, Calueniſt, Puritan, Anabaptiſt, Trinetarie, Family of loue, Adamite, or the lyke: whereof now there are ſo many thouſands abroad, al ſpringing of that firſt ſecte, and troubling at this day the whole worlde, […]

    1581, D. Fulke [i.e., William Fulke], A Briefe Confutation, of a Popish Discourse: […], London: […] [Thomas Dawson] for George Byshop, →OCLC, folio 12, recto and verso

    In the meantime, Lord Avonleigh found a wonderful resource in being loyal; he attended county meetings, denounced the Puritans, discouraged conventicles, discountenanced long graces or long sermons, and was seized with a sudden veneration for the church as established by law, which led to fines and imprisonment on all absentees from worship as ordained by law.

    1834, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], chapter XX, in Francesca Carrara. […], volume III, London: Richard Bentley, […], (successor to Henry Colburn), →OCLC, page 168
  2. The place where such a meeting is held.
  3. A Quaker meetinghouse.
verbconventicle (third-person singular simple present conventicles, present participle conventicling, simple past and past participle conventicled)

present singular third person conventicles · participle present conventicling · participle past conventicled · past conventicled

  1. To hold a secret, unauthorized or illegal religious meeting.

Synonyms & antonyms

nouna building for religious assembly (especially Nonconformists, e.g., Quakers)

Similar
meetinghouse
Broader
place of worshiphouse of prayerhouse of God
Also see
meetinghouse

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*gʷem-“to step”
  2. Proto-Indo-European*ḱóm“along, at, next to, with”
  3. Latinconventiculum“assembly; meeting (or the place involved); association”
  4. Middle Englishconventicle
  5. Englishconventicle

From Late Middle English conventicle, conventicule (“a gathering, meeting (especially a secret or unlawful one); (derogatory) a church”), from Latin conventiculum (“assembly; meeting (or the place involved); association”), from conventus (“assembled, convened”) + -culum (suffix forming noun diminutives), perfect passive participle of conveniō (“to assemble, convene, meet together”), from con- (“together, with”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ḱóm (“along, at, next to, with”)) + veniō (“to approach, come”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *gʷem- (“to step”) + *-yéti (suffix forming intransitive, imperfective verbs)).

More words from Middle English, Latin, Proto-Indo-European

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Danish konventikel
  • konventikelsecret, unauthorized, or illegal religious meeting
Finnish konventikkeli
  • konventikkelisecret, unauthorized, or illegal religious meeting
French conventicule
  • conventiculesecret, unauthorized, or illegal religious meeting
German Konventikel
  • Konventikelsecret, unauthorized, or illegal religious meeting
Norwegian Bokmål konventikkel
  • konventikkelsecret, unauthorized, or illegal religious meeting
Polish konwentykiel
  • konwentykielsecret, unauthorized, or illegal religious meeting
Spanish conventículo
  • conventículosecret, unauthorized, or illegal religious meeting
Swedish konventikel
  • konventikelsecret, unauthorized, or illegal religious meeting
Cite this entry
APA

conventicle. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/conventicle

MLA

“conventicle.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/conventicle. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “conventicle,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/conventicle.

Source: conventicle on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.