---
title: "What Does Sahih Mean? | Islam Is Mercy"
description: "Sahih means authentic. Scholars use it for a hadith that meets strict conditions of reliability, like those in Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim."
lang: en
url: https://islamismercy.com/en/glossary/sahih/
---

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3.  What Does Sahih Mean?

# What Does Sahih Mean?

Written by **Islam Is Mercy Editorial Team**· 1 min readAwaiting scholar review

## The short answer

Sahih means 'sound' or 'authentic'. Hadith scholars use it for a report about the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ that has passed strict tests: an unbroken chain of trustworthy narrators with precise memory, and no hidden defect. Sahih hadith are a reliable source of Islamic teaching.

## On this page

1.  Meaning
2.  How Muslims use it
3.  Example

**Sahih** (Arabic: صحيح) is pronounced *sa-HEEH*.

## Meaning

In everyday Arabic, *sahih* means correct, healthy or sound. In the science of hadith (reports of the words and actions of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ), it is the grade given to the most reliable reports. Scholars call a hadith *sahih* when:

-   its chain of narrators is unbroken, all the way back to the Prophet ﷺ;
-   every narrator was known to be honest and upright;
-   every narrator had a precise memory or careful written records;
-   it does not contradict more reliable reports and has no hidden defect.

Below *sahih* comes *hasan* (good, also accepted), and below that *da’if* (weak), which is not used to establish beliefs or rulings. This careful checking reflects a Qur’anic principle:

> يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوٓا۟ إِن جَآءَكُمْ فَاسِقٌۢ بِنَبَإٍۢ فَتَبَيَّنُوٓا۟ أَن تُصِيبُوا۟ قَوْمًۢا بِجَهَٰلَةٍۢ فَتُصْبِحُوا۟ عَلَىٰ مَا فَعَلْتُمْ نَٰدِمِينَ ﴿٦﴾

> O you who have believed, if there comes to you a disobedient one with information, investigate, lest you harm a people out of ignorance and become, over what you have done, regretful.

[Qur'an, Al-Hujuraat 49:6](https://quran.com/49?startingVerse=6&translations=20)Saheeh International

## How Muslims use it

Muslims ask “Is it sahih?” before relying on a saying attributed to the Prophet ﷺ. Two famous books carry the word in their titles: the collections of al-Bukhari and Muslim, which Muslim scholars regard as the most reliable books after the Qur’an. On this website we only quote hadith graded *sahih* or *hasan*.

## Example

*“That saying is often shared online, but scholars say it isn’t sahih, so it shouldn’t be attributed to the Prophet ﷺ.”*

Read more in [What Is Hadith?](https://islamismercy.com/en/glossary/hadith/) and [Are the Hadith Authentic?](https://islamismercy.com/en/questions/are-hadith-authentic/)

## Key takeaways

-   Sahih means authentic or sound.
-   A sahih hadith has an unbroken chain of trustworthy, precise narrators and no hidden defect.
-   Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim are the best-known collections of authentic hadith.

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## Sources

-   [Qur'an, Al-Hujuraat 49:6](https://quran.com/49?startingVerse=6&translations=20)

## Talk to a Muslim

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## Keep reading

[Glossary

### Hadith — Meaning and Use

A hadith is a report of what the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ said, did or approved, passed on through a checked chain of narrators.

Read article](https://islamismercy.com/en/glossary/hadith/)[Glossary

### Sunnah — Meaning and Use

The Sunnah is the way of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ — his words, actions and example — and the second source of guidance in Islam.

Read article](https://islamismercy.com/en/glossary/sunnah/)[Hard Questions

### Are the Hadith Reliable?

How Muslim scholars tested the reports of the Prophet's words and deeds, what the chain of narrators is, and how the grades sahih, hasan and weak work.

Read article](https://islamismercy.com/en/questions/are-hadith-authentic/)