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• Sharia
  Sharia

  noun

  law, seen as deriving from the Quran, hadith, ijmaʿ, and qiyas.
• sharia
  sharia

  noun

  the body of canonical law based on the Koran that lays down certain duties and penalties for Muslims

Sharia

American  

[shuh-ree-uh, shah-ree-ah] / ʃəˈri ə, ʃɑˈri ɑ /

Or Shariah,

noun

Islam.

1. law, seen as deriving from the Quran, hadith, ijmaʿ, and qiyas.

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sharia British  

/ ʃəˈriːə /

noun

1. the body of canonical law based on the Koran that lays down certain duties and penalties for Muslims

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Etymology

Origin of Sharia

First recorded in 1855–60; from Arabic sharīʿah “law,” from sharaʿa “to prescribe”

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Explanation

In Islam, sharia is religious law that's based on the Quran. Observant Muslims turn to sharia to help them live morally good lives. The Arabic root of sharia is shari'ah, "revealed law," or more poetically, "the clear, well-trodden path to water." These rules are understood to be revelations from God, and observant Muslims use them as instructions for things like prayer and fasting, but also in areas such as business and legal decisions. In majority-Muslim countries, there are entire sharia legal systems, complete with Islamic jurists who interpret texts and issue guidance and punishment.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Sharia sharia

Before them stood 112 coffins containing bones and fragments of victims from the Abu Sharia and al-Hasayna families, two branches of the same Bedouin clan.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 5, 2026

"I'm the sole survivor of my family," said Yousef Abu Sharia, standing nearby.

From BBC ● Aug. 4, 2026

“Singling out Sharia law feels like it’s just an attempt to kind of fearmonger against Muslims and Islamic religious practices,” Sinnar said.

From Salon ● Apr. 17, 2026

Two-thirds referenced themes such as radical Islam, Sharia law, extremism or terrorism.

From Barron's ● Mar. 14, 2026

Tradition has it that modern Sharia Nabi Danyal corresponds to the Street of the Soma, ancient Alexandria’s primary north—south byway.

From "Circumference" by Nicholas Nicastro

A client he had been travelling with to a sharia court hearing was among the 18 dead, Sajili said.

From Barron's ● Jan. 26, 2026

After Ansar Dine took over Timbuktu it tried to impose sharia Islamic law across a divided Mali.

From Reuters ● May 23, 2023

But in Pakistan, leaders including the Islamic-law expert Muhammad Taqi Usmani said lab-grown meat could be permissible if the cells used to create it came from animals slaughtered in compliance with sharia standards.

From Washington Post ● Jan. 27, 2023

Their role as caliphs was in protecting the ummah and providing a political framework in which sharia law could prosper – it was in the Abbasid period that Islamic law was truly developed and codified.

From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2020

After the imposition of sharia, the Taliban became even bolder.

From "Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Changed the World" by Malala Yousafzai

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