synagogue

synagogue — noun

1. a building or room where a Jewish community meets for prayer, religious study, a

1.nounB1
Definition

a building or room where a Jewish community meets for prayer, religious study, and social events

Example

The synagogue on Elm Street was built in 1925 and still holds weekly services.

synagogue + verb: holds services

Every Saturday morning, the Goldberg family walks to their local synagogue.

possessive + synagogue; local synagogue

Common collocations
  • attend synagogue
  • go to synagogue
  • synagogue service
  • synagogue community
  • local synagogue
  • synagogue building
  • synagogue library
Synonyms
  • temple

    used by some Reform and Conservative Jewish congregations, but also refers to non-Jewish places of worship

  • shul

    informal Yiddish-derived term used within Jewish communities

  • bet knesset

    Hebrew term meaning 'house of assembly'; formal and religious in tone

Grammar Patterns

synagogue + verb

at/in/to the synagogue

possessive + synagogue

Usage Note

Often used with a definite article (the synagogue) or a possessive (our synagogue, their synagogue). The phrase 'go to synagogue' drops the article, similar to 'go to church' or 'go to school'.

Common Mistakes

Muslims pray at a synagogue.
Jews pray at a synagogue, while Muslims pray at a mosque.
synagogue refers specifically to a Jewish place of worship, not any religious building.
I visited the synagogue to see Buddhist statues.
I visited the temple to see Buddhist statues.
Buddhist places of worship are called temples, not synagogues.

Word family

  • synagogal
    adjectiveC2

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

These words all name buildings where religious communities gather, but each belongs to a specific faith. 'Synagogue' is the standard English term for a Jewish house of worship and study. 'Temple' can refer to a Jewish congregation (especially Reform) but also covers Hindu, Buddhist, and other non-Jewish sites — making it much broader. 'Church' is exclusively Christian, 'mosque' exclusively Islamic. 'Shul' (from Yiddish) is an informal, in-group alternative for synagogue that a non-Jewish speaker would rarely use. If you are writing about Jewish worship in neutral English, 'synagogue' is the safest choice. For example: 'The new synagogue opened last month' is natural; 'The new shul opened' sounds familiar and insider.

synagogue ↗temple ↗church ↗mosque ↗shul

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

  • go to synagogue
  • attend synagogue
  • belong to a synagogue
  • synagogue member

Prepositions

Etymology

GreekLatinEnglish

Synagogue comes from the Greek word 'synagōgē', which means 'a bringing together' or 'assembly'. It was formed from 'syn-' (together) and 'agein' (to bring or lead). The word passed through Latin into English, first referring to the Jewish congregation itself and later to the building where they met.