What does "culture" mean?
The arts, customs, lifestyles, background, and habits that characterize humankind, or a particular society or nation.
Culture
/ˈkʌlt͡ʃə/ noun, verb
noun, verb ·Common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: The arts, customs, lifestyles, background, and habits that characterize humankind, or a particular society or nation.
- Grammar: culture is listed as noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: acculturation, acculturation, acheulean, acquired taste.
- Useful contrasts: nature.
- Usage evidence: In culture, they are on the same plane as savages.
How to use "culture"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "culture" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "culture" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "culture" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "culture" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "culture" is acting as noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "acculturation" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "culture", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 The arts, customs, lifestyles, background, and habits that characterize humankind, or a particular society or nation. countable, uncountable
"Castration of bulls was a socialization process that turned a bull into an ox; in this transformation something wild became something very useful; nature became culture."
- 2 the raising of plants or animals wordnet
- 3 The beliefs, values, behaviour, and material objects that constitute a people's way of life. countable, uncountable
"I condemn neither way; but culture works differently. It does not try to teach down to the level of inferior classes; it does not try to win them for this or that sect of its own, with ready-made judgments and watchwords. It seeks to do away with classes; to make the best that has been thought and known in the world current everywhere; […]"
- 4 (biology) the growing of microorganisms in a nutrient medium (such as gelatin or agar) wordnet
- 5 The conventional conducts and ideologies of a community; the system comprising the accepted norms and values of a society. countable, uncountable
"Few concepts are as emotionally charged as that of race. The word conjures up a mixture of associations—culture, ethnicity, genetics, subjugation, exclusion and persecution."
Show 13 more definitions
- 6 the tastes in art and manners that are favored by a social group wordnet
- 7 Any knowledge passed from one generation to the next, not necessarily with respect to human beings. countable, uncountable
- 8 all the knowledge and values shared by a society wordnet
- 9 Cultivation. countable, uncountable
"http://counties.cce.cornell.edu/suffolk/grownet/flowers/sprgbulb.htm The Culture of Spring-Flowering Bulbs"
- 10 the attitudes and behavior that are characteristic of a particular social group or organization wordnet
- 11 The process of growing a bacterial or other biological entity in an artificial medium. countable, uncountable
- 12 a particular society at a particular time and place wordnet
- 13 The growth thus produced. countable, uncountable
"I'm headed to the lab to make sure my cell culture hasn't died."
- 14 a highly developed state of perfection; having a flawless or impeccable quality wordnet
- 15 A group of bacteria. countable, uncountable
- 16 The details on a map that do not represent natural features of the area delineated, such as names and the symbols for towns, roads, meridians, and parallels. countable, uncountable
- 17 Ellipsis of archaeological culture (“recurring assemblage of artifacts from a specific time and place that may constitute the material culture remains of a particular past human society”). abbreviation, alt-of, countable, ellipsis, uncountable
- 18 Ethnicity, race (and its associated arts, customs, etc.) countable, euphemistic, uncountable
Verb
- 1 to maintain in an environment suitable for growth (especially of bacteria) (compare cultivate) transitive
- 2 grow in a special preparation wordnet
- 3 to increase the artistic or scientific interest (in something) (compare cultivate) transitive
Synonyms
All synonymsAntonyms
Example
"In culture, they are on the same plane as savages."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "culture"?
Common synonyms include: acculturation, acculturation, acheulean, acquired taste, agrarianism, agricultural geology.
How do you use "culture" in a sentence?
In culture, they are on the same plane as savages.
How do you pronounce "culture"?
Pronounced /ˈkʌlt͡ʃə/.
Etymology
From Middle French culture (“cultivation; culture”), from Latin cultūra (“cultivation; culture”), from cultus, perfect passive participle of colō (“till, cultivate, to grow, worship”) (related to colōnus and colōnia), from Proto-Indo-European *kʷel- (“to move; to turn (around)”).