Khamenei

American

[khah-muh-ney, kah‑, khah-me-ney] / ˌxɑ məˈneɪ, ˌkɑ‑, ˌxɑ mɛˈneɪ /

noun

Ayatollah Sayyid Ali Hosseini, born 1939, chief Islamic leader of Iran since 1989.

Khamenei British

/ ˌxɑməˈnɪ /

noun

Ayatollah Seyed Ali (ˈseɪjət). born 1940, Iranian political and religious leader: president (1981–89); supreme leader from 1989

"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

Example Sentences

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Khamenei

Shamkhani is the son of security official Ali Shamkhani, an advisor to Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei.

From Barron's ● Jul. 14, 2026

Raisi was once a potential successor to Khamenei, whereas Mr. Pezeshkian was merely a safe pair of hands.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 12, 2026

Khamenei was laid to rest at the shrine of Imam Reza, Iran's holiest Shia Muslim site, marking the end of six days of public mourning ceremonies in five cities across Iran and neighbouring Iraq.

From BBC ● Jul. 9, 2026

Iranians were preparing on Thursday to bury their slain leader Ali Khamenei in his hometown of Mashhad in northeast Iran, as new US strikes threatened to trigger a fresh escalation in the Middle East war.

From Barron's ● Jul. 8, 2026

Ayatollah Khamenei was Iran’s Supreme Cleric: the absolute religious and governmental authority.

From "Darius the Great Is Not Okay" by Adib Khorram

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023