taqiyah

or ta·qi·ya

[tuh-kee-yuh]

noun (in Shiʿite Islam)

the practice of denying one's religion, permissible when one is faced with persecution, especially by Sunnites: regarded as a means of protecting the religion.

Origin of taqiyah

From the Arabic word taqiyyah literally, caution, prudence

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018