ayatollah
noun
aya·tol·lah
ˌī-ə-ˈtō-lə 
-ˈtä-
-ˈtä-
-ˈtə-,
ˈī-ə-ˌtō-,
-ˌtä-,
-ˌtə-
: a religious leader among Shiite Muslims
—used as a title of respect especially for one who is not an imam
Examples of ayatollah in a Sentence
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That ornery cleric was Moqtada al-Sadr, the son of Mohammad Sadiq al-Sadr, a grand ayatollah assassinated almost certainly by Saddam’s order in 1999.
—
Graeme Wood, The Atlantic, 2 Sep. 2025
One ayatollah in particular, Ruhollah Khomeini, needled the Shah incessantly.
—Daniel Immerwahr, New Yorker, 4 Aug. 2025
Two ayatollahs said threats to Iran's supreme leader are insults to Islam.
—Somayeh Malekian, ABC News, 30 June 2025
In 1979, a revolution established an Islamic Republic, grounded in strict Muslim religious ideology, led by a religious ayatollah.
—Sharyl Attkisson, Baltimore Sun, 27 June 2025
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Graeme Wood, The Atlantic, 2 Sep. 2025
One ayatollah in particular, Ruhollah Khomeini, needled the Shah incessantly.
—Daniel Immerwahr, New Yorker, 4 Aug. 2025
Two ayatollahs said threats to Iran's supreme leader are insults to Islam.
—Somayeh Malekian, ABC News, 30 June 2025
In 1979, a revolution established an Islamic Republic, grounded in strict Muslim religious ideology, led by a religious ayatollah.
—Sharyl Attkisson, Baltimore Sun, 27 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for ayatollah
Cite this Entry
“Ayatollah.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ayatollah. Accessed 18 Sep. 2025.
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