Islam

American  

[is-lahm, iz-, is-luhm, iz-] / ɪsˈlɑm, ɪz-, ˈɪs ləm, ˈɪz- /

noun

1. the religious faith of Muslims, based on the words and religious system founded by the prophet Muhammad and taught by the Quran, the basic principle of which is absolute submission to a unique and personal god, Allah.

2. the whole body of Muslim believers, their civilization, and the countries in which theirs is the dominant religion.

---

Islam British  

/ ˈɪzlɑːm /

noun

1. the religion of Muslims, having the Koran as its sacred scripture and teaching that there is only one God and that Mohammed is his prophet; Mohammedanism

2. 1. Muslims collectively and their civilization

   2. the countries where the Muslim religion is predominant

---

Islam Cultural  

1. A religion, founded by Muhammad, whose members worship the one God of Jews (see also Jews) and Christians (see also Christian)(God is called Allah in Arabic) and follow the teachings of the Koran. Islam means “submission to the will of God”; adherents of Islam are called Muslims. The fundamental belief of Islam is “There is only one God, and Muhammad is his prophet.” Muslims are obliged to pray five times a day, to fast in the daytime during the holy month of Ramadan, to abstain from pork and alcohol, and to make gifts to the poor. All of them are expected to make a pilgrimage to Mecca (see also Mecca), Muhammad's birthplace, at least once in their lives.

---

Discover More

Shi'ite and Sunni Muslims make up the two main branches of Islam.

Islam is the dominant faith in Arab nations, a number of countries of central Asia, and Malaysia and Indonesia.

Other Word Forms

• Islamic
  adjective
• Islamitic
  adjective
• non-Islamic
  adjective
• non-Islamitic
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of Islam

First recorded in 1610–20; from Ottoman Turkish islām, from Arabic islām “submission (to God),” from aslama “to surrender, resign oneself, submit oneself (to God's will),” from the Semitic root šlm “to be whole, sound”; akin to Arabic salām and Hebrew shālōm “peace,” from the Semitic noun šalām

Compare meaning

How does islam compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• Muslim vs. Islam
• Nation of Islam vs. Islam

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Islam

The procession coincided with the annual commemoration of Imam Hussein, the mourning month of Muharram, the holiest period of the year in Shia Islam.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 8, 2026

Islam Makhachev, the current No. 1 pound-for-pound ranked fighter, is a devout Muslim from Dagestan.

From Slate ● Jun. 14, 2026

"It is as if we are trapped in a pond. There's only one way out, and that's Hormuz," explains the captain of another vessel, Shafiqul Islam.

From BBC ● Jun. 2, 2026

At first, the immigrant teachers provided my children with useful lessons about the core beliefs and practices of Islam, and my children enjoyed exploring the cultural diversity of the families there.

From Salon ● Jun. 1, 2026

I had heard a great deal, long before I finally met him, of the Honorable Elijah Muhammad, and of the Nation of Islam movement, of which he is the leader.

From "The Fire Next Time" by James Baldwin