Islamism

1 of 2

noun (1)

Is·​lam·​ism is-ˈlä-ˌmi-zəm 

iz-, 

-ˈla-;

ˈiz-lə-

1

: the faith, doctrine, or cause of Islam

2

: a popular reform movement advocating the reordering of government and society in accordance with laws prescribed by Islam

Islamist

is-ˈlä-mist 

iz-, 

-ˈla-;

ˈiz-lə-

noun

Islamist

2 of 2

noun (2)

Is·​lam·​ist -mə̇st 

plural -s

1

: an orthodox Muslim

2

: a student or scholar of Islamics

3

: a person who advocates reordering government and society in accordance with Islamic laws : a supporter or advocate of Islamism

Examples of Islamism in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Ankara’s newfound Islamism has shifted its attention more towards the Muslim world, however, and shaped its alliances. — Brady Knox, The Washington Examiner, 14 June 2026

The regime’s fall could mark the exhaustion of Islamism as a political force — the latest in a line of Middle Eastern ideologies that overpromised and catastrophically underdelivered. — Danielle Pletka, Washington Post, 1 May 2026

Benson said there seems to be a correlation between Islamism and hardcore leftism. — Britta Miller, The Washington Examiner, 23 Apr. 2026

These concerns have reinforced Tashkent’s support for initiatives such as the ICCU, which promote a tolerant and inclusive Islam to counter militant Islamism. — Kamran Bokhari, Forbes.com, 16 Mar. 2026

Iran, with its massive military capabilities, its oil wealth, its appetite for regional hegemony and its obdurate Islamism may have been the foremost obstacle to Israel’s integration into the region since 1979. — Ron Kampeas, Sun Sentinel, 2 Mar. 2026

Managing rising Islamism Other than the BNP, the other main beneficiary of Thursday’s election is the Bangladesh’s main Islamist party, Jamaat e-Islami, which has had its Hasina-era ban rescinded and looks on course to win the second most seats. — Charlie Campbell, Time, 13 Feb. 2026

Burke’s history ends with Osama bin Laden and other figures who emerged in a region where liturgies of the left had given way to radical Islamism. — Thomas Meaney, New Yorker, 2 Feb. 2026

Name actors without laundering—and separate Islamism from Muslims in the same breath. — Güney Yıldız, Forbes.com, 24 Jan. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

Noun (1)

1747, in the meaning defined at sense 1