The Hejaz war, meanwhile, would be one of dervishes against regular troops.
Source: wiktionary
Dervish
/ˈdɜː(ɹ)vɪʃ/
Synonyms for "dervish" (53 found)
Ranked by relevance and common usage.
Closest matches (11)
Noun(3 words)
Strong matches (16)
Related words (26)
Choosing the right synonym
- Closest matches in this entry: abdal, abstainer, albigensian, anchorite, ascetic.
- Sentence evidence is available for dervish, so synonym choice can be checked against real usage rather than a flat word list.
- Ranking signals come from moby, opengloss.
Synonym selection checklist
- Match the part of speech before comparing meanings.
- Check whether the synonym changes intensity, formality, or emotional tone.
- Read the replacement inside the full sentence, not just beside "dervish".
- Prefer the clearest word over the most unusual word when writing for speed or comprehension.
When not to replace "dervish"
Keep "dervish" when the sentence already sounds natural, when a synonym would add unintended emphasis, or when readers need the most familiar wording. A synonym should clarify or sharpen the message, not simply make the sentence look more varied.
If two options seem close, choose the one that best matches the audience and purpose of the sentence.
Replacement workflow
1. Preserve meaning
Choose a synonym only if it keeps the core idea of "dervish" intact in the sentence you are editing.
2. Tune tone
Check whether the replacement sounds more formal, casual, emotional, technical, or forceful than the original word.
3. Re-read context
Read the full sentence after the swap. Keep the synonym only when the sentence becomes clearer or more precise.
Review note: Synonym lists are ranked with lexical data and reviewed for practical writing value. Use the comparison notes, sentence evidence, and source labels together; a high-ranking synonym can still be wrong when the audience, register, or grammar changes.
Final fit check
After choosing a replacement for "dervish", read the sentence once for meaning and once for rhythm. The best synonym should feel natural in the full sentence, not only accurate in a word list.
If the synonym makes the sentence slower, vaguer, or more dramatic than intended, keep "dervish" or choose a simpler alternative from the closest-match group.
Related word relations
OpenGloss and ConceptNet supply richer edges like generalizations, collocations, and derivations.
More general
11 entriesMore specific
10 entriesMevlevi dervishSufi asceticSufi mysticSufi wandererfrenzied admirernomadic mysticrabid supporterroving dervishsemazenwhirling dervish
Collocations
5 entriesMevlevi dervishSufi dervishdervish lodgedervish ritualwhirling dervish
Inflections
1 entriesDerivations
2 entriesTranslations
58 translations across 48 languages.
Arabic
2 entries- درويش noun (Sufi ascetic)
- دَرْوِيش noun (Sufi ascetic)
Armenian
1 entries- դերվիշ noun (Sufi ascetic)
Azerbaijani
1 entries- dərviş noun (Sufi ascetic)
Belarusian
1 entries- дэ́рвіш noun (Sufi ascetic)
Bengali
1 entries- দরবেশ noun (Sufi ascetic)
Bulgarian
1 entries- де́рвиш noun (Sufi ascetic)
Catalan
1 entries- dervix noun (Sufi ascetic)
Central Kurdish
1 entries- دەروێش noun (Sufi ascetic)
Chinese Mandarin
2 entries- 德爾維希 /德尔维希 noun (Sufi ascetic)
- 托钵僧 noun (Sufi ascetic)
Czech
1 entries- derviš noun (Sufi ascetic)
Danish
1 entries- dervish noun (Sufi ascetic)
Dutch
1 entries- derwisj noun (Sufi ascetic)
Esperanto
1 entries- derviŝo noun (Sufi ascetic)
Estonian
1 entries- derviš noun (Sufi ascetic)
Finnish
1 entries- dervissi noun (Sufi ascetic)
French
1 entries- derviche noun (Sufi ascetic)
Georgian
1 entries- დერვიში noun (Sufi ascetic)
German
2 entries- Derwisch noun (Sufi ascetic)
- Derwischin noun (Sufi ascetic)
Greek
2 entries- δερβίσης noun (Sufi ascetic)
- ντερβίσης noun (Sufi ascetic)
Hebrew
1 entries- דרוויש noun (Sufi ascetic)
Hindi
1 entries- दरवेश noun (Sufi ascetic)
Hungarian
1 entries- dervis noun (Sufi ascetic)
Indonesian
1 entries- darwis noun (Sufi ascetic)
Italian
1 entries- derviscio noun (Sufi ascetic)
Japanese
1 entries- ダルヴィーシュ noun (Sufi ascetic)
Kazakh
1 entries- деревиш noun (Sufi ascetic)
Kyrgyz
2 entries- дарвиш noun (Sufi ascetic)
- дербиш noun (Sufi ascetic)
Macedonian
1 entries- дервиш noun (Sufi ascetic)
Manx
1 entries- jervish noun (Sufi ascetic)
Northern Kurdish
2 entries- derwêş noun (Sufi ascetic)
- dewrêş noun (Sufi ascetic)
Ottoman Turkish
2 entries- دده noun (Sufi ascetic)
- درویش noun (Sufi ascetic)
Pashto
1 entries- دروېش noun (Sufi ascetic)
Persian
1 entries- درویش noun (Sufi ascetic)
Polish
1 entries- derwisz noun (Sufi ascetic)
Portuguese
1 entries- dervixe noun (Sufi ascetic)
Romanian
1 entries- derviș noun (Sufi ascetic)
Russian
1 entries- де́рвиш noun (Sufi ascetic)
Serbo-Croatian
2 entries- derviš noun (Sufi ascetic)
- дервиш noun (Sufi ascetic)
Slovak
1 entries- derviš noun (Sufi ascetic)
Slovene
1 entries- derviš noun (Sufi ascetic)
Spanish
1 entries- derviche noun (Sufi ascetic)
Swedish
1 entries- dervisch noun (Sufi ascetic)
Tajik
1 entries- дарвеш noun (Sufi ascetic)
Turkish
1 entries- derviş noun (Sufi ascetic)
Ukrainian
1 entries- де́рвіш noun (Sufi ascetic)
Urdu
1 entries- درویش noun (Sufi ascetic)
Uzbek
1 entries- darvesh noun (Sufi ascetic)
Volapük
3 entries- därvid noun (Sufi ascetic)
- hidärvid noun (Sufi ascetic)
- jidärvid noun (Sufi ascetic)
Sample sentences
1 total sentences available.
Common questions
What are the closest synonyms for "dervish"?
Closest matches include abdal, abstainer, albigensian, anchorite, ascetic.
How should I check whether a synonym fits "dervish"?
Compare the replacement against real sentence context. This entry includes sample sentences so you can check tone, grammar, and meaning before swapping words.