cargo cult

noun

(sometimes initial capital letters)

any of various Indigenous religious groups of a millenarian and messianic character located in the southwestern Pacific Islands, holding that spirits will bring large cargoes of modern goods for distribution among its adherents.

cargo cult

noun

a religious movement of the SW Pacific, characterized by expectation of the return of spirits in ships or aircraft carrying goods that will provide for the needs of the followers

Discover More

Other Word Forms

cargo cultist noun

Discover More

Word History and Origins

Origin of cargo cult¹

First recorded in 1945–50

Discover More

Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

After the war, the cargo cult became a tradition, with adherents even building mock airstrips to induce John Frum to return from the skies with cargo.

From

They were quotation marks as rendered by a cargo cult, as if someone had once seen a quotation mark but hadn’t ever actually used one.

From

More on the crisis in research: Feynman on ‘cargo cult science’

From

It’s a rite of spring for a team that more often resembles a cargo cult than an N.B.A. franchise.

From

The theorists in this group bounce the ball, cut it open and rub their hands over the seams like members of a cargo cult.

From

cargo bay cargo liner

Browse