caliph
Americannoun
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a spiritual leader of Islam, claiming succession from Muhammad.
-
any of the former Muslim rulers of Baghdad (until 1258) and of the Ottoman Empire (from 1571 until 1924).
noun
Other Word Forms
- caliphal adjective
Etymology
Origin of caliph
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English caliphe, califfe, from Middle French, from Medieval Latin calipha, from Arabic khalīf(a) “successor (of Muhammad),” derivative of khalafa “succeed”
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
As caliph, Abdulmejid was ordered to keep a low profile.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 4, 2026
It started out as a rebranded faction of Al Qaeda, under the leadership of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, an Iraqi militant cleric and insurgent leader turned self-styled caliph.
From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 2, 2025
It is named after Omar, Islam's second caliph.
From BBC • Dec. 8, 2023
Over the weekend, Serigne Mountakha Mbacke, caliph of the Mouride brotherhood, Senegal’s most influential religious order, called on people in the city of Touba, the brotherhood’s headquarters, to stop demonstrating and return home.
From Washington Times • Jun. 5, 2023
After this conversation Aboulcassem conducted the lady to the same chamber that the caliph had occupied, where they remained until all was quiet in the dwelling.
From The Thousand and One Days A Companion to the 'Arabian Nights' by Pardoe, Julia
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
