dervish

noun

der·vish | \ˈdər-vish

Definition of dervish

1 : a member of a Muslim religious order noted for devotional exercises (such as bodily movements leading to a trance)

2 : one that whirls or dances with or as if with the abandonment of a dervish

Examples of dervish in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Anna is a whirling dervish who talks in her sleep all night long, even getting up to stand on the bed sometimes! — Ellie Delano, Woman's Day, "Dreaming Of A Good Night's Sleep," 9 Aug. 2011 His cross-eyes and panting-dog demeanor belie a natural genius, which is the player's talent at jumping on enemies and spinning into them like a dervish to vanquish them. — Harold Goldberg, chicagotribune.com, "Classic games, lovingly reimagined in 'Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy'," 13 July 2018 What Happened: The G7 Summit has arrived in Canada, bringing with it the whirling dervish that is international diplomacy in the age of Donald Trump. — Graeme Mcmillan, WIRED, "While You Were Offline: International House of ... Breakfast? Bacon? Befuddlement?," 10 June 2018 The dervishes have provided Turkey with some of its most iconic images. — Erin Cunningham, Washington Post, "Why Turkey’s president was among thousands in Konya paying homage to Rumi," 2 Jan. 2018 The old free-wheeling, button-mashing, whirling dervish style gives way to more calculated, hands-on direct melee combat. — Kyle Orland, Ars Technica, "God of War (2018): How to reinvent a beloved series without ruining what works," 12 Apr. 2018 What followed is an event that none of the 110 guests are likely to forget—one where the entertainment included fire-eaters, belly dancers, fireworks, and a Sufi whirling dervish. — Brooke Porter Katz, Harper's BAZAAR, "Queen of the Desert: Henrietta Tiefenthaler & Oli Wennink's Wedding in Morocco," 11 Apr. 2018 In 16 minutes of action Monday, Gillespie scored four points; had five rebounds, an assist, and a steal; and was a dervish on defense. — Mike Sielski, Philly.com, "Don't forget Collin Gillespie's contributions Monday; without them, Villanova wouldn't have won another title | Mike Sielski," 3 Apr. 2018 But where Thompson operates almost exclusively around the rim, Minnie is a bit of a dervish. — Elton Alexander, cleveland.com, "Players to watch at the 2018 MAC Tournament," 7 Mar. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'dervish.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.