Cults (5)
I believe the answer is:
sects
<span class="explanation-format__ClueExplanation">'<span class="explanation-format__original">cults</span>' is the definition.<br/ ><span class="explanation-format__explanation">(both can mean religious groups)</span><br/ ><br/ >This is the entire clue.<br/ ></span>
(Other definitions for sects that I've seen before include "Groups of people with divergent religious beliefs" , "Small religious groups" , "Religious factions" , "Orders" , "Schools of thought" .)