imam
[ih-
mahm
]
/ɪˈmɑm/
noun
,
Islam.
1.
the officiating priest of a mosque.
2.
the title for a Muslim religious leader or chief.
3.
one of a succession of seven or twelve religious leaders, believed to be divinely inspired, of the Shiʿites.
Also,
imaum
[ih-
mahm
, ih-
mawm
]
/ɪˈmɑm, ɪˈmɔm/
(
Show IPA
)
.
Origin
1605-15;
<
Arabic
imām
leader, guide
Related forms
imamship,
noun
Can be confused
clergy
,
cleric
,
imam,
minister
,
pastor
,
priest
,
rabbi
.
Examples from the web for
imam
Two months earlier, it had been the turn of the former
imam
at the mosque.
The
imam
was round and jolly and sat cross-legged under a whirring ceiling fan.
When the sun set an
imam
came out to chant the evening prayer.
Nothing brings the
imam
more joy than guiding them to marriage.
The
imam
cried while praying for the dead and wounded.
He moves from artifact to structure to event, from king to president to
imam
, with a relentless horizontality.
His pandit, his
imam
and his priest are less than pleased.
He also had
imam
malik, the founder of another school of law, flogged.
British Dictionary definitions for
imam
imam
/
ɪˈmɑːm
/
noun
(
Islam
)
1.
a leader of congregational prayer in a mosque
2.
a caliph, as leader of a Muslim community
3.
an honorific title applied to eminent doctors of Islam, such as the founders of the orthodox schools
4.
any of a succession of either seven or twelve religious leaders of the Shiites, regarded by their followers as divinely inspired
Word Origin
C17: from Arabic: leader, from
amma
he guided
Word Origin and History for
imam
n.
1610s, from Arabic, literally "leader; one who precedes," from
amma
"to go before, precede."