Pahlavi
1 Americannoun
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the Indo-European, Iranian language of the Zoroastrian literature of the 3rd to the 10th centuries.
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the script used in writing this language, derived from the Aramaic alphabet.
noun
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Pahlavis
plural
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Muhammad Riza (or Reza) 1919–80, shah of Iran 1941–79; in exile after 1979 (son of Riza Shah Pahlavi).
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Riza (or Reza) Shah, 1877–1944, shah of Iran 1925–41.
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(lowercase) a former gold coin of Iran, equal to 20 rials.
noun
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Mohammed Reza (ˈriːzə). 1919–80, shah of Iran (1941–79); forced into exile (1979) during civil unrest following which an Islamic republic was established led by the Ayatollah Khomeini
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his father, Reza. 1877–1944, shah of Iran (1925–41). Originally an army officer, he gained power by a coup d'état (1921) and was chosen shah by the National Assembly. He reorganized the army and did much to modernize Iran
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of Pahlavi
First recorded in 1765–75, Pahlavi is from the Persian word Pahlavī Parthian
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.
See Examples For:
Reza Pahlavi, the eldest son of the last shah of Iran and pretender to the throne, was a scheduled speaker, and the event was packed with Iranian monarchists.
From Slate ● Mar. 27, 2026
In 1979 Americans immediately felt the malign effects of that year’s Islamic revolution, which replaced the autocratic but modernizing Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi with the Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 25, 2026
On Tuesday, Reza Pahlavi, the exiled son of Iran's last shah, urged people in Iran to obtain essential supplies as soon as possible and wait for what he called his "final call".
From BBC ● Mar. 12, 2026
"The members of the Iranian Women's National Football Team are under significant pressure and ongoing threat from the Islamic Republic," said Reza Pahlavi, the son of the late shah of Iran.
From Barron's ● Mar. 10, 2026
The country officially switched to the Solar Hijri calendar in 1925, under the Pahlavi dynasty.
From "Americanized" by Sara Saedi
Under the Pahlavis, Iran was a reliable partner for both.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 21, 2026
Three midlevel Iranian government officials, reached over the past week to discuss other issues, brought up unprompted that they privately longed for the return of the Pahlavis.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 10, 2026
It was used by every dynasty for 800 years, including the Safavids, Qajars and Pahlavis.
From The Guardian ● Jun. 17, 2015
Under the Pahlavis, women were liberated from the traditional chador, permitted to vote and divorce their husbands.
From Time Magazine Archive
Egypt, Morocco and Mexico provided temporary havens, but as the Pahlavis were forced to move on, they increasingly found themselves in a dog-eat-Shah world.
From Time Magazine Archive
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.
