CONVENTICLE, noun [Latin] 1. An assembly or meeting; usually applied to a meeting of dissenters from the established church, for religious worship. In this sense it is used by English writers and in English statutes. Hence, an assembly, in contempt. In the United States, this word has no appropriate application, and is little used, or not at all. 2. A secret assembly or cabal; a meeting for plots.
Source: Webster's 1828 American Dictionary ↗ · public-domain · returned verbatim, no AI