English Reference

Word

sunni

Phoneticssun·ni

/ˈsuni/

Definitions

01a follower

B2 · Religion

n. a person who follows the largest branch of Islam.

n. a follower of the majority branch of Islam, which accepts the first four caliphs as rightful successors to Muhammad.

“The local community includes both Sunnis and Shias who live peacefully together.”

“As a Sunni, he adheres to the traditions and practices established by the majority consensus of the early Muslim community.”

Usage

Capitalized in all uses.

Antonyms

ShiiteShia

02relating to the branch

B2 · Religion

adj. relating to the main branch of Islam and its traditions.

adj. pertaining to the branch of Islam that recognizes the Sunnah and the authority of the Sahabah.

“They visited a Sunni mosque during their trip to Istanbul.”

“The scholar provided a detailed analysis of Sunni jurisprudence and its historical development across the Middle East.”

Usage

Always capitalized; typically precedes the noun it modifies.

Etymology

From Arabic سُنِّيّ (sunniyy), from سُنَّة (sunna, “Sunna”) + ـِيّ (-iyy). By surface analysis, Sunna + -i.

Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Domain

Religion

This entry

Level
B2 · Upper Intermediate
Frequency
Frequent
Updated

Scan code

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English Reference