Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

shi'a

/ˈʃiːə/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.34 in modern English

Syllables: shi'a
IPA: /ˈʃiːə/

7

Scrabble Score

4

Letters

1

Syllables

4

Unique Chars

Meaning

name

name

The followers of this branch of Islam; the Shiites.

noun

Synonym of Shiite.

Example Sentences

"In Islam, Sunni is a more triumphant version of the faith than Shia, which stresses the importance of suffering, following the founder Ali, who was persecuted."
"Shi’a is one of the two larger divisions of Islam, […]"
"Jordanians do not know what Shi’a is about, and it was very recently, [the] last few years, when we start[ed] being exposed to Shi’a."
"But the Shī'a was not yet a sect; there can as yet be no division of Islam between Shi'ite and Sunni."
"Throughout the Umayyad period, the Shi'a were confined to southern 'Iraq [...]"

Etymology

From Arabic شِيعَة (šīʕa, “sect, faction, party; [collectively] followers, partisans”), as the word has been used in شِيعَة عَلِيّ (šīʕat ʕalī, “the faction of Ali; [collectively] the followers of Ali”) or الشِّيعَة (aš-šīʕa, “the Faction; the Followers”).

Origin

Source language: Arabic

Word Breakdown

Root: شِيعَة, ش ي ع

Inflected Forms

Shia (alternative) Shiah (alternative) Shi'ah (alternative) Schiah (alternative, obsolete) Shi'as (plural)

Derived Forms

Shi'ism Shi'ite Shiadom Shiaphilia Shiaphobe Shiaphobia Shiastan Shi'iness Shiist Shiiteness Shi'itic Shi'ize

Phrases

anti-Shi'a Shi'a-centric Shi'a Islam Shi'a Muslim anti-Shia anti-Shiism anti-Shiite inter-Shia

Frequently Paired Words

Shi'i

Synonyms

Shi'i Islam Shi'ism Shiite

Rhymes With

idea via korea south korea north korea maria santa maria garcia mia pro-mia ea deliver the message to garcia

Questions

How do you pronounce shi'a?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˈʃiːə/.
What does shi'a mean?: Shi'a Islam.
Where does shi'a come from?: It is traced to Arabic.

How to pronounce shi'a

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “shi'a”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˈʃiːə/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “shi'a”.
Repeat and practice — Say “shi'a” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.