The Meaning of Cabal: What It Is and How To Use It

Have you ever been part of a cabal? This article teaches you what the meaning of cabal is, followed by other information about cabals.

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Have you ever seen the word cabal used in a news article or story and wondered what it means? This article will teach you all about what the word cabal means, how to use it in a sentence, and more. 

By the end of this article, you will be confident in your ability to use the word cabal in a sentence. Keep reading to learn all about the word cabal! 

What Does Cabal Mean?

According to Dictionary, cabal is a noun that refers to a conspiracy or group of people who plot against an authority figure such as a government or a leader. It can also refer to the schemes and ideas of such groups. Less often, a cabal refers to a small group or clique of people in a creative field. 

The word cabal can also be used as an intransitive verb to refer to the action of forming such a group or conspiracy theory. The pronunciation of cabal is kəˈbæl.

How Can Cabal Be Used in a Sentence?

The word of the day cabal can be a noun or a verb in several different contexts. By looking at these example sentences using cabal, you can learn how to use this word in many ways. See if you can determine cabal’s part of speech in each of the below sentences.

Example #1: A Secret Cabal

The FBI discovered a secret cabal in Ft. Lauderdale that was an offshoot of QAnon members. They had planned to assassinate a senator, but their plan was quickly foiled.

Question: The above sentence uses which definition of cabal?

Answer: Noun, a group of secret conspiracists. 

Example #2: Caballing Together

The plotters in Arlington caballed about their plan to overthrow the Capitol for a political purpose. Unfortunately, they based their beliefs on unfounded conspiracy theories.

Question: The above sentence uses which definition of cabal?

Answer: Verb, to conspire or plot.

Example #3: A Cabal in Britain

There was a secret plot and cabal against Charles II in Buckingham Palace by a man named Clifford.

Question: The above sentence uses which definition of cabal?

Answer: Noun, the schemes of a secret group.

Example #4: A Raucous Cabal

The lively cabal of artists meets in the speakeasy on the third Thursday of every month to talk about their successes and lament their failures.

Question: The above sentence uses which definition of cabal?

Answer: Noun, an artistic or creative clique.

What Is the Etymology of Cabal?

According to Dictionary, the word cabal came from the French cabale and began its usage in the early 1600s as caballe. This term comes from the Medieval Latin cabbala and the Medieval Latin cabala and kabbalah. 

What Are Translations of Cabal?

People can form cabals in many different countries, not just English-speaking ones. You can study the below list of translations of cabal from Nice Translator to learn how to use the word cabal in different languages. 

If you are interested in international relations or plan to travel abroad, knowing translations of the word cabal can be useful. 

  • Hindi: साज़िश
  • Vietnamese: âm mưu
  • Arabic: عصبة جمعية سرية
  • Romanian: intrigi
  • Latvian: kabīne
  • Marathi: कॅबल
  • Greek: κλίκα
  • Estonian: kabal
  • Croatian: kabal
  • Finnish: kabal
  • Portuguese (Brazil): cabala
  • German: Kabale
  • Amharic: ካባ
  • Hebrew: קְנוּנִיָה
  • Bulgarian: кабал
  • Swedish: kabal
  • Russian: кабал
  • Chinese (Taiwan): 陰謀
  • Malayalam: കാബൽ
  • Korean: 음모
  • Polish: kabała
  • Italian: cabala
  • Indonesian: komplotan rahasia
  • Spanish: cábala
  • Hungarian: összeesküvés
  • Basque: kabal
  • Dutch: kliek
  • Portuguese (Portugal): cabala
  • Chinese (PRC): 阴谋
  • Catalan: cabal
  • Japanese: カバール
  • Turkish: kabal
  • Slovak: cabal
  • Slovenian: kabal
  • Ukrainian: кабал
  • Gujarati: કાદવ
  • Czech: chabal
  • Serbian: кабал
  • Welsh: nghabal
  • Thai: คำพูด
  • Tamil: கபால்ட்
  • French: cabale
  • Urdu: کیبل
  • Kannada: ಕಬಲ್

What Are Synonyms of Cabal?

Cabal is a fairly rare and formal word that you may not frequently hear in the English language. If somebody doesn’t know what you mean by the word cabal, it is useful to know different synonyms for this word so that you can clarify. 

It is also useful to know synonyms of the word cabal if you feel like you are over using it and want to vary your vocabulary. Power Thesaurus provides the below list of translations of the word cabal.

  • alliance
  • association
  • band
  • be in cahoots with
  • bloc
  • camarilla
  • camp
  • caucus
  • cell
  • circle
  • clique
  • coalition
  • collusion
  • combination
  • complot
  • confederacy
  • confederation
  • conjure
  • connivance
  • connive
  • conspiracies
  • conspiracy
  • conspire
  • conspires
  • conspiring
  • coterie
  • counterplot
  • covin
  • crew
  • division
  • faction
  • factions
  • federation
  • gang
  • get in bed with
  • ginger group
  • group
  • grouping
  • in-group
  • intrigue
  • junta
  • junto
  • league
  • lobby
  • machinate
  • machination
  • mafia
  • mob
  • party
  • plot
  • political party
  • put out a contract
  • ring
  • scheme
  • sect
  • set
  • side
  • society
  • union
  • wing
  • work something out

What Are Antonyms of Cabal?

Many words in the English language also have the opposite meaning of the word cabal. Power Thesaurus also provides these antonyms of cabal. First, see if you are already familiar with these antonyms of cabal! Then, study the ones you don’t already know to grow your vocabulary.

  • acknowledgement
  • actuality
  • authenticity
  • brightness
  • chastity
  • clarity
  • clearness
  • cognizance
  • communication
  • confession
  • conversation
  • directness
  • enlightening
  • explicitness
  • exposure
  • fairness
  • faithfulness
  • fork
  • honesty
  • justness
  • lucidity
  • obviousness
  • openness
  • outspokenness
  • publicity
  • reliability
  • righteousness
  • straightforwardness
  • trustworthiness
  • truth

Conclusion

The word cabal has several definitions. First, and most commonly, cabal is a noun that refers to a group of conspiracy theorists or people plotting against a government or authority. It can also refer to that group’s specific plots and schemes. For its third noun definition, a cabal is a creative clique. Finally, as a verb, to cabal means to conspire or plot against something.

Sources:

  1. Cabal synonyms – 542 Words and Phrases for Cabal | Power Thesaurus 
  2. Cabal antonyms – 25 Opposites of Cabal | Power Thesaurus 
  3. Cabal Definition & Meaning | Dictionary.com 
  4. Cabal | Nice Translator