Muslim

American  

[muhz-lim, mooz-, moos-] / ˈmʌz lɪm, ˈmʊz-, ˈmʊs- /

adjective

1. of or relating to the religion, law, or civilization of Islam.

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noun

plural

Muslims, Muslim

1. an adherent of Islam.

2. Black Muslim.

Muslim British  

/ ˈmʌz-, ˈmʊzlɪm /

noun

1. a follower of the religion of Islam

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adjective

1. of or relating to Islam, its doctrines, culture, etc

Other Word Forms

• Muslimism noun
• anti-Muslim adjectiveanti-Muslim, anti-Muslims
• half-Muslim adjectivehalf-Muslim, half-Muslims
• non-Muslim adjectivenon-Muslim, non-Muslims
• pre-Muslim adjectivepre-Muslim, pre-Muslims
• pro-Muslim adjectivepro-Muslim, pro-Muslims
• pseudo-Muslim adjectivepseudo-Muslim, pseudo-Muslims

Etymology

Origin of Muslim

< Arabic, literally, a person who submits. See Islam

Compare meaning

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

• Muslim vs. Islam

Example Sentences

Rahbar was raised in a Muslim family, but said he was agnostic when he left Iran.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 4, 2026

Shahabi was born into a deeply religious Muslim family and served as a Quran teacher in Iran.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 4, 2026

Beijing removed Ma as Xinjiang’s party secretary in July, installing a senior ethnic-affairs official to lead the Central Asian frontier region where about 12 million Turkic-speaking Muslim Uyghurs live.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 3, 2026

The four-way meeting between the Muslim nations was convened "to review the evolving regional situation and discuss issues of mutual interest", Pakistan's foreign ministry said in a brief statement.

From Barron's • Mar. 29, 2026

This year must have been so much harder for her, someone so visibly Muslim.

From "Internment" by Samira Ahmed

Related Words

• adherent
• believer
• devotee