Khomeini

American  

[khoh-mey-nee, khoo-, khaw-mey-nee] / xoʊˈmeɪ ni, xʊ-, ˌxɔ meɪˈni /

noun

1. Ayatollah Ruhollah 1900?–89, Islamic leader of Iran 1979–89.

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Khomeini British  

/ ˈxɔmeɪˈniː /

noun

1. Ruholla (ˈruhɒˈlɑː), known as Ayatollah Khomeini. 1900–89, Iranian Shiite Muslim religious and political leader. Following the overthrow of the shah of Iran (1979) he returned from exile and instituted an Islamic republic. His rule saw deteriorating relations with the West and war (1980–88) with Iraq

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Example Sentences

To end the Iran-Iraq war in the 1980s, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the regime’s first supreme leader, made the difficult call to end the fighting, a decision he likened to drinking from a poisoned chalice.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 10, 2026

To end the Iran-Iraq war, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini made the difficult call during a high level of debate to end the fighting, a decision he likened to drinking from a poisoned chalice.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 25, 2026

Born in Najaf, Iraq in 1957 to a prominent Shia cleric who was close to the Islamic Republic's founder Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, Larijani's family has been influential within Iran's political system for decades.

From Barron's • Mar. 17, 2026

Hassan Khomeini, grandson of the first supreme leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, was in the ilk of the reformists.

From BBC • Mar. 9, 2026

We were scheduled to arrive at Tehran Imam Khomeini International Airport at 2:35 a.m. local time, which constituted a thirty-minute journey into the future.

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