schism

CEFRC1

/ˈskɪzəm/

noun · verb

Türkçe translations

Translating…

In plain English

  1. 01

    noun

    A serious split within a group or organization.

  2. 02

    noun

    Extra detail

    A formal division or split within a religious body.

Examples

  • Helen's forum experienced an irreconcilable schism over whether to use one or two oven mitts.

  • The community underwent a schism.

At a glance

Sits at C1 on the CEFR scale

Senses
5
Parts of speech
2
Citations
3
Synonyms
3

Also pronounced

  • /ˈsɪzəm/
  • /ˈʃɪzəm/

Deep Dive

noun

Extra meanings

  1. a split within Christianity whereby a group is no longer in communion with the Church or its ecclesiastical authorities, but shares essentially the same beliefs; in other words, a political split without the introduction of heresy.

  2. A split or separation within a group or organization, typically caused by discord.

verb

Extra meaning

  1. To split, divide (a group or organization).

More examples

In context

  • The schism between Sunnis and Shias happened quite early in Islamic history.

  • But Harry, in his civilian suit, was also a reminder of the schism between the traditional and the modern in the royal family that can’t be drowned out by pageantry.

  • “This is going to schism Maga terribly online,” Kirk said. “You're going to see—I don't want to say a Maga civil war, but it's going to be a Maga online food fight that is going to be very hard to navigate.”

Synonyms

Antonyms

Quick test

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Question 1 · Quick check

A serious blank divided the religious community when leaders argued over important rituals.

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Nearby

Origin

noun

From Middle English scisme, from Old French cisme or scisme, from Ancient Greek σχίσμα (skhísma, “division”), from σχίζω (skhízō, “I split”). Doublet of schisma. Compare chasm. This word was historically pronounced /ˈsɪzəm/ (and still is among the clergy); the pronunciations /ˈʃɪzəm/, /ˈskɪzəm/ are due to the spelling (the latter may have been reinforced by learned influence); compare schedule.