often capitalized
1
: the prayer leader of a mosque
2
: a Muslim leader of the line of Ali held by Shiites to be the divinely appointed, sinless, infallible successors of Muhammad
3
: any of various rulers that claim descent from Muhammad and exercise spiritual and temporal leadership over a Muslim region
Examples of imam in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The community welcomed him from Day 1, no questions asked, said Brother Kaleem, the imam, who turned to Islam in the 1970s and trained in Saudi Arabia.
—
Carol Rosenberg Natalie Keyssar, New York Times, 9 May 2024
Messages seeking comment left with the Al Quds Committee Detroit and an imam who spoke at the rally were not returned.
—Niraj Warikoo, Detroit Free Press, 10 Apr. 2024
See all Example Sentences for imam 
Carol Rosenberg Natalie Keyssar, New York Times, 9 May 2024
Messages seeking comment left with the Al Quds Committee Detroit and an imam who spoke at the rally were not returned.
—Niraj Warikoo, Detroit Free Press, 10 Apr. 2024
See all Example Sentences for imam
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'imam.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Imam.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/imam. Accessed 29 May. 2024.
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