Definition
The washing of specific limbs — face, hands to the elbows, wiping the head and ears, and washing the feet to the ankles — before ṣalāh and other acts requiring purity.
Pronunciation: wu-ḌŪ'
Etymology & Root
From و-ض-أ (w-ḍ-'), meaning 'to be bright, clean.' Wuḍū' brightens the limbs — the Prophet ﷺ said his Ummah will be recognised on the Day of Judgement by the brightness from wuḍū'.
Usage in the Qur'an
'O you who believe, when you rise to pray, wash your faces and your hands to the elbows, and wipe over your heads, and wash your feet to the ankles.' (al-Mā'idah 5:6)
Usage in the Sunnah
'Allah does not accept prayer without purification.' (Muslim 224)
Common Misconceptions
Some assume that touching a woman or eating camel meat without distinction breaks wuḍū'. The correct positions are: touching with desire breaks it; eating camel meat does break it (per the authentic ḥadīth in Muslim).
Practical Application
Maintain wuḍū' as much as possible — it is light upon light, and the Prophet ﷺ said no one preserves it except a believer.
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Related Terms
More from Fiqh Terms
The direction of the Ka‘bah faced in prayer.
The lesser pilgrimage — performed any time of year.
The pre-dawn meal before fasting.
Obligatory annual charity — third pillar of Islam.
Fasting — fourth pillar of Islam.
Breaking the fast at sunset.