sheik
English
Alternative forms
Etymology
From Arabic شَيْخ (šayḵ, “elder”).
Pronunciation
Noun
sheik (plural sheiks)
- The leader of an Arab village, family or small tribe.
- An Islamic religious cleric; the leader of an Islamic religious order.
- (some Arab Gulf countries) An official title for members of the royal family as well as some prominent families.
- (1920s) A romantic lover. (from the 1921 film The Sheik)
- 1939, George Orwell, Coming Up for Air, part 1, chapter 1:
- When your last natural tooth goes, the time when you can kid yourself that you're a Hollywood sheik, is definitely at an end.
- 1939, George Orwell, Coming Up for Air, part 1, chapter 1:
- (slang) An Arab, especially one dressed in traditional clothing.
- An honorific for specialists in spirituality.
Usage notes
The use for a religious leader is colloquial as a means of respect. There is no official title.
Related terms
Translations
leader of an Arab village, family or small tribe
|
Islamic religious clergy
|
Gulf countries: official title for members of the royal family
|
1920s: romantic lover
|
Anagrams
Dutch
Etymology
From Arabic شَيْخ (šayḵ), from شَاخَ (šāḵa, “to age, grow old”).
Pronunciation
- Lua error in Module:parameters at line 290: Parameter 1 should be a valid language or etymology language code; the value "Netherlands" is not valid. See WT:LOL and WT:LOL/E. IPA(key): /ʃɛi̯k/
- Lua error in Module:parameters at line 290: Parameter 1 should be a valid language or etymology language code; the value "Flanders" is not valid. See WT:LOL and WT:LOL/E. IPA(key): /ʃɛːk/
- Rhymes: -ɛi̯k
Noun
sheik m (plural sheiks, diminutive sheikje n)
Categories:
- English terms borrowed from Arabic
- English terms derived from Arabic
- English 1-syllable words
- English terms with IPA pronunciation
- English terms with audio links
- Rhymes:English/iːk
- English terms with homophones
- English lemmas
- English nouns
- English countable nouns
- English slang
- English words not following the I before E except after C rule
- en:Islam
- Dutch terms derived from Arabic
- Dutch terms with IPA pronunciation
- Rhymes:Dutch/ɛi̯k
- Dutch lemmas
- Dutch nouns
- Dutch nouns with plural in -s
- Dutch masculine nouns