fatwa
noun
ˈfät-wä\
Definition of fatwa
: a legal opinion or decree handed down by an Islamic religious leader
Examples of fatwa in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Shortly before the attack struck, the clerics had issued a fatwa against suicide bombings and urged peace talks to end the Afghan war. — Rahim Faiez And Amir Shah, Fox News, "Suicide bombing targets gathering of clerics in Afghanistan, killing 7," 4 June 2018 After consulting with doctors, Khomeini sanctioned gender-transition surgery in a groundbreaking fatwa. — Washington Post, "Iran’s transgender people face discrimination despite fatwa," 21 May 2018 The fatwa also said that killing people by any means, including with bombs and suicide attacks, are sins in Islam. — Washington Post, "Taliban calls Islamic Scholars conferences a US process," 26 June 2018 The fatwa also said that killing people by any means — such as bombs and suicide attacks — as well as violent acts, including robbery and kidnapping, count as sins in Islam. — Rahim Faiez And Amir Shah, Fox News, "Suicide bombing targets gathering of clerics in Afghanistan, killing 7," 4 June 2018 Seventy prominent Muslim scholars from Afghanistan, Pakistan and Indonesia issued the fatwa, or edict, at a conference in Indonesia on ways to achieve peace and stability in Afghanistan. — Fox News, "Muslim scholars: Suicide attacks violate Islamic principles," 11 May 2018 The Afghan Ulema Council, which includes Muslim clerics, scholars and men of authority in religion and law from across the country, issued the fatwa at a gathering on Monday in Kabul that hosted around 2,000 council members. — Fox News, "Afghanistan's top religious council bans suicide attacks," 4 June 2018 Ayatollah Khomeini of Iran issued a fatwa, or religious decree, calling on the faithful to kill Mr. Rushdie, who went into hiding. — James R. Hagerty, WSJ, "Peter Mayer Revived Penguin Books by Giving Readers What They Wanted," 25 May 2018 Most responded to a fatwa, or religious edict, from Iraq’s most influential cleric, Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, and joined an array of militias, some of them backed by Iran. — Isabel Coles And, WSJ, "After Defeating Islamic State, Iraq’s Shiites Turn Ire Toward Government," 12 Mar. 2018These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'fatwa.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Keep scrolling for more
Keep scrolling for more
Comments on fatwa
What made you want to look up fatwa? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).
Test Your Vocabulary
A Thanksgiving Word Quiz
-
- November comes from a word for which of the following numbers?
Can you spell these 10 commonly misspelled words?
TAKE THE QUIZ
Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.
TAKE THE QUIZLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridgedWords at Play
Ask the Editors
Word Games
-
A Thanksgiving Word Quiz
We are thankful for obscure words.
Take the quiz -
Difficult Vocab Quiz
Another round of challenging vocab!
Take the quiz -
Spell It
Can you spell these 10 commonly misspelled words?
Take the quiz -
Dictionary Devil
The dictionary has been scrambled—can you put it back together?
Play the game
Share fatwa
Resources for fatwa