Iranian

[ ih-rey-nee-uhn, ih-rah-, ahy-rey- ]

adjective
  1. of or relating to Iran, its inhabitants, or their language.

  2. of or relating to the Iranian languages.

noun
  1. a subbranch of the Indo-European family of languages, including especially Persian, Pashto, Avestan, and Kurdish.

  2. an inhabitant of Iran; Persian.

Origin of Iranian

1
First recorded in 1835–45; Iran + -ian
  • Also I·ra·ni [ih-ran-ee, ih-rah-nee, ahy-rey-] /ɪˈræn i, ɪˈrɑ ni, aɪˈreɪ-/ (for defs. 1, 4).

Other words from Iranian

  • an·ti-I·ra·ni·an, adjective, noun
  • pro-I·ra·ni·an, adjective, noun
  • pseu·do-I·ra·ni·an, adjective, noun
  • trans-I·ra·ni·an, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use Iranian in a sentence

  • There is now no longer any right course of action nor any self-devotion left among the Iranis.

    Essays, Second Series | Ralph Waldo Emerson

British Dictionary definitions for Iranian

Iranian

/ (ɪˈreɪnɪən) /


noun
  1. a native, citizen, or inhabitant of Iran

  2. a branch of the Indo-European family of languages, divided into West Iranian (including Old Persian, Pahlavi, modern Persian, Kurdish, Baluchi, and Tajik) and East Iranian (including Avestan, Sogdian, Pashto, and Ossetic)

  1. Also: Persian, Farsi the modern Persian language

adjective
  1. relating to, denoting, or characteristic of Iran, its inhabitants, or their language; Persian

  2. belonging to or relating to the Iranian branch of Indo-European

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012