Kaaba

noun

Kaa·​ba ˈkä-bə How to pronounce Kaaba (audio)
: a small stone building in the court of the Great Mosque at Mecca that contains a sacred black stone and is the goal of Islamic pilgrimage and the point toward which Muslims turn in praying

Examples of Kaaba in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Furthermore, the Kaaba, considered one of the most sacred spots on Earth by Muslims, is in the center of the Great Mosque in Mecca. Marina Johnson, The Courier-Journal, 14 Feb. 2024 Opening the section is a tile from 17th-century Iznik, a major Ottoman ceramics center, that diagrams the Great Mosque in Mecca, with the Kaaba at its center. Vanessa H. Larson, Washington Post, 12 Oct. 2023 Also in March, a high-level cleric at Medina’s Kaaba mosque tweeted his concern about prison inmates at risk of infection by the coronavirus—only to lose his job. Geneive Abdo, Foreign Affairs, 13 Aug. 2020 Some of the rituals included in the hajj pilgrimage are to go around the Kaaba in seven, counter-clockwise circles and walking or running seven times between two valley mountains called Safa and Marwa. Manal Aman, Good Housekeeping, 19 June 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'Kaaba.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Arabic kaʽba, literally, cubic building

First Known Use

1734, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of Kaaba was in 1734

Dictionary Entries Near Kaaba

Cite this Entry

“Kaaba.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Kaaba. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

Kaaba

noun
Kaa·​ba ˈkäb-ə How to pronounce Kaaba (audio)
: a small stone building in the court of the Great Mosque at Mecca that contains a sacred black stone and is the point toward which Muslims turn in praying

More from Merriam-Webster on Kaaba

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