mufti

[ muhf-tee ]

See synonyms for mufti on Thesaurus.com

noun,plural muf·tis.

civilian clothes, in contrast with military or other uniforms, or as worn by a person who usually wears a uniform.
a Muslim jurist expert in the religious law.

(in the Ottoman Empire) a deputy of the chief Muslim legal adviser to the Sultan.
(initial capital letter) Grand Mufti.

Origin of mufti

First recorded in 1580–90, mufti is from the Arabic word muftī literally, “a person who delivers a judgment,” originally a Muslim legal adviser; sense of def. 1 arises from the legal adviser being a civil official

Words Nearby mufti

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use mufti in a sentence

At the end of his prayer, the grand mufti whispered aloud: “May God accept it.”
Does Pope Francis Believe Christians and Muslims Worship the Same God? | Jay Parini | December 7, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
In 2000, the then-grand mufti insisted the earth was flat and disk-shaped and the sun revolved around it.
Saudi Arabia’s Comic Book Fatwa | Christopher Dickey | March 28, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
Unfortunately, Grand mufti Abdulaziz al-Sheikh and his colleagues who issued the fatwa against The 99 fit that description.
Saudi Arabia’s Comic Book Fatwa | Christopher Dickey | March 28, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
What he calls a “papery palace of stories” sustains identity and ties mufti to place.
“Now we wonder why this has all gone so wrong.” | Frederick Deknatel | November 26, 2013 | THE DAILY BEAST
mufti later describes the violence devastating his country as “a clash of civilizations inside Pakistan.”
“Now we wonder why this has all gone so wrong.” | Frederick Deknatel | November 26, 2013 | THE DAILY BEAST

Frenchmen live in uniform, while no British soldier is quite happy without mufti.
The British Expedition to the Crimea | William Howard Russell
He was a tall man, a little stooped, his clothes—uniform and mufti alike—perpetually rumpled.
Security | Poul William Anderson
This he obtained without difficulty, then changing into mufti he went ashore.
The Dreadnought of the Air | Percy F. Westerman
He was in mufti, whoever he was, and received us kindly enough.
The Escape of a Princess Pat | George Pearson
"I want to enrol myself as a Special Constable," I said to the man in mufti behind the desk.
Punch, or the London Charivari, Vol. 147, September 2nd, 1914 | Various

British Dictionary definitions for mufti (1 of 2)

mufti¹

/ (ˈmʌftɪ) /

nounplural -tis

a Muslim legal expert and adviser on the law of the Koran
(in the former Ottoman empire) the leader of the religious community

Origin of mufti

C16: from Arabic muftī, from aftā to give a (legal) decision

British Dictionary definitions for mufti (2 of 2)

mufti²

/ (ˈmʌftɪ) /

nounplural -tis

civilian dress, esp as worn by a person who normally wears a military uniform

Origin of mufti

C19: perhaps from mufti 1

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

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