zakat

American  

[zuh-kaht] / zəˈkɑt /

Also zakah

noun

Islam.

1. a tax, comprising percentages of personal income of every kind, levied as almsgiving for the relief of poor people: the third of the Pillars of Islam.

---

zakat British  

/ zaˈkat /

noun

1. Islam an annual tax on Muslims to aid the poor in the Muslim community

---

Etymology

Origin of zakat

First recorded in 1800–05; from Turkish zekât or Persian zakāt, from Arabic zakāh

---

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

zakat

The other pillars are the profession of faith, prayer five times a day, zakat - a form of charity, and making the pilgrimage to the holy city of Mecca once in their lifetime.

From BBC ● Mar. 11, 2024

Islam calls on Muslims to set aside 2.5 percent of their accumulated wealth each year for zakat, said Khalid Latif, the executive director of the Islamic Center at New York University.

From New York Times ● Apr. 29, 2022

It isn’t required to pay zakat during Ramadan, but many Muslims choose to do so because of the month’s spiritual rewards.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 31, 2022

Rehman pointed out that zakat, an obligatory form of almsgiving and one of the five pillars of Islam, has a much larger footprint.

From Slate ● Aug. 17, 2018

“Just do zakat, give the money to someone in need, okay? No sheep kill­ing.”

From "The Kite Runner" by Khaled Hosseini

Random Word

Spin the wheel and learn a new word!

---