Did you know?
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
CBS News, 11 Dec. 2025
Throughout, hate mail poured into inboxes at mosques and advocacy groups.
—Rob Kuznia, CNN Money, 7 Dec. 2025
In the 1990s, Minnesota had only a handful of mosques.
—Michael Dorgan, FOXNews.com, 6 Dec. 2025
On March 15, 2019, a gunman unleashed a horrifying terror attack on a mosque and an Islamic center in Christchurch, killing 51 people.
—Matthew Carey, Deadline, 2 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for mosque
Cite this Entry
“Mosque.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mosque. Accessed 14 Dec. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
mosque
noun
Share