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ayatollah

   Also found in: Encyclopedia, Wikipedia, Hutchinson 0.01 sec.
a·ya·tol·lah  (y-tl, -t-lä)
n. Islam
1. A high-ranking Shiite religious authority regarded as worthy of imitation in matters of religious law and interpretation.
2. Used as a title for such a leader.

[Persian yatollh, from Arabic 'yatu llh, sign of God : 'yatu, bound form of 'ya, sign, Koranic verse; see wy in Semitic roots + allh, Allah; see Allah.]

ayatollah [ˌaɪəˈtɒlə]
n
(Non-Christian Religions / Islam) one of a class of Iranian Shiite religious leaders
[via Persian from Arabic, from aya sign + Allah god]
ThesaurusLegend:  Synonyms Related Words Antonyms
Noun1.ayatollah - a high-ranking Shiite religious leader who is regarded as an authority on religious law and its interpretation and who has political power as well
Iran, Islamic Republic of Iran, Persia - a theocratic Islamic republic in the Middle East in western Asia; Iran was the core of the ancient empire that was known as Persia until 1935; rich in oil
religious leader - leader of a religious order
Translations
ayatollah [aɪəˈtɒlə] Nayatolá m, ayatollah m
ayatollah [ˌaɪəˈtɒlə] nayatollah m
ayatollah
nAyatollah m


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? Mentioned in ? References in periodicals archive
 
The future imam's grandfather, Ayatollah Mohammed Sadiq al-Qazwini, remained in Iraq even though he criticized the Ba'ath regime.
Although he is the elected president of Iran, he serves at the pleasure of Ayatollah All Khamenei, who has been the official "Supreme Leader" since 1990, when he assumed that title upon the death of Ayatollah Khomeini.
Ahmadinejad has announced that he intends to return Iran to the purity of the revolution that brought the Ayatollah Khomeini to power in 1979.
 
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