sultan

noun

sul·​tan ˈsəl-tᵊn How to pronounce sultan (audio)
: a king or sovereign especially of a Muslim state
sultanic adjective

Examples of sultan in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Sleep in a Palace The Ottoman Empire may have faded away a century ago, but the Bosporus waterway is still flanked by palaces once occupied by sultans and their families or high-ranking courtiers. Joe Yogerst, Forbes.com, 16 July 2025 The sultans and their successors have been replaced—first by the British East India Company, which ruled over Gujarat for nearly 50 years, and then, in the wake of the 1857 Indian Uprising, by the British government. Radha Vatsal june 20, Literary Hub, 20 June 2025 One of the greatest Ottoman sultans, Suleiman the Magnificent, was even given the title Qanuni (law-giver) as testament to the fact that much of the legal sphere naturally fell outside the purview of sharia. Mohammed Ayoob, Foreign Affairs, 3 Apr. 2016 Attracting everyone from sultans and princes to Charlie Caplin and Winston Churchill in its glory days, Impérial Palace is still the place to be more than a century later—and the views don’t get better than the top floor Imperial Suite, where a terrace shows off 360-degree vistas of Lake Annecy. Lane Nieset, Travel + Leisure, 22 June 2025 See All Example Sentences for sultan

Word History

Etymology

Middle French, from Arabic sulṭān

First Known Use

1555, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of sultan was in 1555

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Sultan.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sultan. Accessed 29 Jul. 2025.

Kids Definition

sultan

noun
sul·​tan ˈsəlt-ᵊn How to pronounce sultan (audio)
: a king or ruler especially of a Muslim state

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