Literally, those who are enlightened
Members of certain associations in Modern Europe, who combined to promote social reforms, by which they expected to raise men and society to perfection, esp. of one originated in 1776 by Adam Weishaupt, professor of canon law at Ingolstadt, which spread rapidly for a time, but ceased after a few years.
The Hesychasts, Mystics, and Quietists;
Any persons who profess special spiritual or intellectual enlightenment.
(a.k.a. the enlightened ones) A group or individual who claim to be unusually enlightened. A secret philosophical and political society established by Adam Weishaupt in Germany in 1776. They promoted free thought and democracy. A game involving trading cards. A sinister organization believed to consist of evil men who control world finances, and whose goal is world domination through world government. Many consider this group to be non-existent.
The dictionary says that they're "enlightened groups". Obviously those who wrote the dictionary are part of the conspiracy. The Illuminati are actually the secret powers which rule the world. (Steve Jackson has the scoop on these guys.) They work behind the scenes; they stay out of the spotlight. Sometimes they use innocuous front organizations to cover up their real activities. They have agents everywhere, and they exert subtle control over everything. Some of them aren't even human. Where did they come from? What do they want? Why do they do what they do? You aren't cleared for that. But pseudo-illuminati appear all the time in anime, mostly to put us off the scent.
People who have or profess to have intellectual or spiritual enlightenment; any of various societies, usually secret, composed of such people. Illuminism is the doctrines or claims of any of the illuminati.
Illuminati is an unusual card game (not a trading card game) made by Steve Jackson Games (SJG), inspired by The Illuminatus! Trilogy. The game has ominous secret societies competing with each other to control the world through sinister means, including legal, illegal, and even mystical.
In the video game Deus Ex, The Illuminati are a fictional branch of the original ancient secret organization, The Bavarian Illuminati, founded by Adam Weishaupt in 1792. They have controlled the world "behind the scenes" for centuries, carefully managing the world's economies and governments in their quest for complete global control. Though in the first game, they have been usurped from their position of power by ex-protégé Bob Page and his splinter group "Majestic 12".
In the fictional universe of Warhammer 40,000, the Illuminati are a subset of humanity, defined by having survived possession by a warp entity. They are special because their possession leaves them with a unique understanding of the warp and warp entities. Also, the Illuminati are among the few allowed to enter the fabled Black Library, the Eldar race's repository of knowledge of Chaos.
The Illuminati are a fictional group of superheroes who joined forces and secretly work behind the scenes in the Marvel Universe. The group was formed after the Kree-Skrull War. That war was depicted in Avengers #93-97 (1971-1972 http://www.comics.org/details.lasso?id=24632), however the Illuminati were not established to exist until their first appearance in New Avengers #7 (July 2005) http://www.comics.org/details.lasso?id=245817, written by Brian Michael Bendis.
The Illuminati is the name used for several groups, real and fictitious. Most commonly The Illuminati refers specifically to the Bavarian Illuminati, an Enlightenment secret society. However, it often refers to a shadowy conspiratorial organization which is reputed to secretly control world affairs, usually a modern incarnation or continuation of the Bavarian Illuminati.
