marabout
Americannoun
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Islam.
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a hermit or holy man, especially in N Africa, often wielding political power and credited with supernatural powers.
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the tomb or shrine of such a man.
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noun
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a Muslim holy man or hermit of North Africa
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a shrine of the grave of a marabout
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of marabout
1615–25; < French < Portuguese marabuto < Arabic murābit; see Almoravid, maravedi
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.
He’d become a recluse, a Sufi, a marabout.
From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 26, 2023
Another marabout in a suburb of Dakar said he supports the government's efforts, but Quranic schools need more financial support to improve.
From US News • Aug. 26, 2016
“They tried to take away everything that made Timbuktu Timbuktu,” said Mahalmoudou Tandina, a marabout, or Islamic preacher, whose ancestors first settled in Timbuktu from Morocco in the 13th century.
From New York Times • Feb. 1, 2013
Thurman, the willowy actress who's one of eight members of the jury presided by Robert De Niro, wore a white bustier dress by Versace, with a marabout feather-embellished train.
From Seattle Times • May 12, 2011
But, if thou dancest not, the city shall know whether Ben-Abid is a truth-teller, and whether the blessings of the great marabout can rest upon such a woman as thou art.
From Halima And The Scorpions 1905 by Hichens, Robert Smythe
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.
