nonsectarian

adjective

non·​sec·​tar·​i·​an ˌnän-(ˌ)sek-ˈter-ē-ən How to pronounce nonsectarian (audio)
: not having a sectarian character : not affiliated with or restricted to a particular religious group

Examples of nonsectarian in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web About Gulliver Schools Gulliver Schools is a 501(c)(3) private, non-profit, independent, coeducational, nonsectarian day school with the mission of providing a superior, personalized college-preparatory education fostering well-rounded, successful, lifelong learners. Miami Herald, 30 Aug. 2015 As Iraqis struggled to reconstitute their state, no single actor had the power or incentive to disband these groups or force them to enter a national, nonsectarian military. Steven Simon and Adam Weinstein, Foreign Affairs, 27 Sep. 2023 Only a handful of charges were filed until Zia added several Islam-specific clauses to this nonsectarian code. Myriam Renaud, The Conversation, 5 July 2023 More recently, the nation’s highest court ruled last year – in a case originating in Maine – that any state tuition assistance made available to families should be allowed for use at religious private schools, not just nonsectarian ones. Jackie Valley, The Christian Science Monitor, 22 June 2023 The farmers’ protest had a heavy Punjabi representation, and the country’s governing Bharatiya Janata Party tried to paint it as pro-Khalistani, but the bulk of it was nonsectarian. Karishma Mehrotra, Washington Post, 16 Apr. 2023 They’re sold alongside a nonsectarian array of other holiday sweets: Easter eggs, Star of David lollipops, chocolate Seder plates and plaques etched with drawings of the Last Supper. Reggie Nadelson, New York Times, 7 Apr. 2023 The Supreme Court on Tuesday sided with Maine parents who challenged a state-run tuition program that bars public funds from going to schools that provide religious instruction, finding the state's requirement that only nonsectarian schools qualify for the program violates the First Amendment. Melissa Quinn, CBS News, 21 June 2022 An agreement linking the nonsectarian Sierra Vista Medical Center in Tucson with the Catholic Carondelet Health System was dissolved in 2011, after administrators refused a doctor permission to perform an emergency pregnancy termination for a patient suffering a miscarriage. Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 11 Jan. 2022

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'nonsectarian.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1831, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of nonsectarian was in 1831

Dictionary Entries Near nonsectarian

Cite this Entry

“Nonsectarian.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/nonsectarian. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

nonsectarian

adjective
non·​sec·​tar·​i·​an ˌnän-(ˌ)sek-ˈter-ē-ən How to pronounce nonsectarian (audio)
: not having a sectarian character : not restricted to a particular religious group

More from Merriam-Webster on nonsectarian

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