Mujahideen, or Mujahidin, is the plural form of mujahid, an Arabic term that broadly refers to people who engage in jihad, interpreted in a jurisprudence of Islam as the fight on behalf of God, religion or the community (ummah).

Jihad is an Arabic word which literally means "striving" or "struggling", especially with a praiseworthy aim. In an Islamic context, it can refer to almost any exertion of effort to make personal and social life conform with God's guidance, such as internal struggle against one's evil inclinations, proselytizing, or efforts toward the betterment of the Muslim community (Ummah), though in non-Muslim societies the term is most often associated with armed conflict.