henna
Americannoun
-
an Asian shrub or small tree, Lawsonia inermis, of the loosestrife family, having elliptic leaves and fragrant flowers.
-
a reddish-orange dye or cosmetic made from the leaves of this plant.
-
a color midway between red-brown and orange-brown.
verb (used with object)
-
hennas,
present (3rd person singular)
-
hennaed,
past participle, past
-
hennaing
present participle
noun
-
a lythraceous shrub or tree, Lawsonia inermis, of Asia and N Africa, with white or reddish fragrant flowers
-
a reddish dye obtained from the powdered leaves of this plant, used as a cosmetic and industrial dye
-
a reddish-brown or brown colour
verb
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
hennasimple
-
hennassimple
-
have hennaedperfect
-
has hennaedperfect
-
am hennaingprogressive
-
are hennaingprogressive
-
is hennaingprogressive
-
have been hennaingperfect progressive
-
has been hennaingperfect progressive
Past
-
hennaedsimple
-
had hennaedperfect
-
was hennaingprogressive
-
were hennaingprogressive
-
had been hennaingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of henna
First recorded in 1590–1600, henna is from the Arabic word hinnā'
Vocabulary lists containing henna
Brown
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
He then offered a lighthearted alternative: “Maybe they could do a henna one, and then commit to make it permanent if we hire them.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 31, 2026
Light-up toys flashed in every kid’s hands and fireworks exploded overhead while henna artists inked swirling patterns onto excited patrons.
From Slate ● Apr. 5, 2025
“All my friends were Black, and we got together and cooked Indian food and painted henna on our hands, and I never felt uncomfortable with my cultural background.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 20, 2024
Researchers used lawsone, a red-orange compound found in henna leaves that has antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial properties, to boost the performance of cotton.
From Science Daily ● Feb. 8, 2024
Didu talks about winning first prize in a dance contest the summer she was fifteen, and how everyone raved over her feet with their henna designs.
From "You Bring the Distant Near" by Mitali Perkins
By late afternoon, old indigents with hennaed beards filled many of the alleyways, prostrate in nests of discarded twigs.
From New York Times ● Apr. 8, 2019
They both was fair, and each one had hair hennaed auburn-purple and dressed in curls.
From The Verge ● Mar. 1, 2018
With her long, hennaed hair, expressive voice and contagious energy, Manny is clearly the forward thrust of the Bear Creek engine.
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 23, 2013
The face of the heavily hennaed woman at the veggie burger van visible wrinkles in disgust the moment Hayden Thorpe starts belting out his fruity falsetto.
From The Guardian ● Aug. 6, 2011
A video of a woman in orange hijab with plump hennaed hands and lots of jewelry fills the screen.
From "A Place at the Table" by Saadia Faruqi and Laura Shovan
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
