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Mosques were known to the English-speaking world long before we called them mosques. In the 15th, 16th, and 17th centuries, we used many different variations of the word—moseak, muskey, moschy, mos’keh, among others—until we finally hit on mosquee, emulating Middle French. The Middle French word had come by way of Italian and Old Spanish from the Arabic word for "temple," which is masjid. In the early 1700s, we settled on the present spelling, and mosque thus joined other English words related to Muslim worship: mihrab, for the special niche in a mosque that points towards Mecca; minaret, for the tall slender tower of a mosque; and muezzin, for the crier who, standing in the minaret, calls the hour of daily prayers.
Examples of mosque in a Sentence
Graham Dunbar, Chicago Tribune, 15 June 2026
The Australian White supremacist Brenton Tarrant made the symbol during a 2019 courtroom appearance following his arrest for murdering 50 people in a shooting at mosques in New Zealand.
—Dan Sheldon, New York Times, 15 June 2026
But what actually happened was that much larger numbers of people came out en masse to demonstrate and show their opposition to the racist rioting and the targeting of refugees and asylum seekers and mosques, and so on.
—Isaac Chotiner, New Yorker, 12 June 2026
Attorneys for the president of Wisconsin's largest mosque say he is being denied basic medical care for diabetes and has lost 30 pounds in the two months since he was detained by immigration officers.
—CBS News, 9 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for mosque
Cite this Entry
“Mosque.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mosque. Accessed 24 Jun. 2026.
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mosque
noun
