Meaning & use
sunnah
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Meanings
noununcountablereligion
The example set by the Prophet Muhammad through what he said, did and approved, which Muslims follow as a guide for daily life.
Grammar: Usually used without an article when it means the whole body of practice: she studies the sunnah.
Patterns
- follow the sunnah
- according to the sunnah
- a sunnah of the Prophet
Many Muslims try to follow the sunnah in matters such as greeting others and sharing meals.
The scholar explained how the sunnah clarifies details that the Quran leaves open.
He grew up learning the sunnah from his grandfather, who taught by example.
nouncountablereligion
A single recommended act that the Prophet performed, which a believer is encouraged but not strictly required to copy.
Grammar: Used with an or the when naming one act: brushing the teeth is a sunnah.
Patterns
- it is a sunnah to do something
- a sunnah prayer
Eating with the right hand is regarded as a sunnah by many families.
The imam described the short prayer before the main one as a sunnah.
Fasting on Mondays is a sunnah that some people keep all year.
Word forms
| plural | sunnahs |
|---|
Common combinations
- follow the sunnah
- She tries to follow the sunnah in how she treats her neighbors.
- revive a sunnah
- The community worked to revive a sunnah that had nearly been forgotten.
- Quran and sunnah
- The ruling was based on the Quran and sunnah together.
- sunnah prayer
- He offered a sunnah prayer after the obligatory one.
- according to the sunnah
- According to the sunnah, guests should be welcomed warmly.
Synonyms and how they differ
- tradition
- Tradition is a general word for any inherited custom, whereas sunnah refers specifically to the Prophet's example.
- practice
- Practice can describe any habitual action, while sunnah implies a model set by the Prophet and followed for religious reasons.
- hadith
- A hadith is a written report of what the Prophet said or did, while the sunnah is the pattern of conduct those reports reveal.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: sunnah or sunna? sunnah or hadith?
sunnah vs sunna
This is just an alternative spelling of the same word, not a different term.
sunnah vs hadith
A hadith is a report that records the Prophet's words or actions; the sunnah is the way of life those reports describe.
Practice
Which word names a report that records something the Prophet said, as opposed to the pattern of conduct itself, which is the sunnah?
Choose one answer.
A hadith is the written report; the sunnah is the example it preserves. A surah is a chapter of the Quran, a fatwa is a legal opinion, and a minaret is a tower.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “sunnah”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.