Congregation
/ˌkɒŋɡrɪˈɡeɪʃən/
Definitions
2 meaningsA group of people who come together for religious purposes.
/ˌkɒŋɡrɪˈɡeɪʃən/
A group of people assembled for religious worship.
The church congregation was welcoming to new visitors.
💡 Simply: Imagine a church, synagogue, or mosque. A congregation is all the people who gather there regularly, like your family and their friends attending a Sunday service or a weekly worship.
👶 For kids: A group of people who go to church or temple together to pray and learn about their religion.
More Examples
The size of the congregation varies depending on the sermon.
The pastor addressed the congregation during the prayer.
How It's Used
"The congregation sang hymns during the service."
A group of people assembled in one place.
/ˌkɒŋɡrɪˈɡeɪʃən/
An assembly of people.
The politician spoke to the large congregation in the park.
💡 Simply: Picture a crowd of people coming together for a special event, like a town meeting or a concert. The congregation refers to that group of people. This is similar to the first definition but less specific to religious groups.
👶 For kids: A bunch of people all together in one place.
More Examples
A congregation of birds gathered on the telephone wires.
The announcement drew a large congregation to the town hall.
How It's Used
"A large congregation gathered at the town square for the announcement."
From Latin *congregatio* ('a gathering together'), from *congregare* ('to collect into a flock'), from *con-* ('together') + *gregare* ('to gather').
The term has been used since the 14th century primarily in religious contexts to describe groups of worshippers.
Memory tip
Think of people *con*ing together to *greg*ariously enjoy a religious event *ation*.