abaya

American  

[uh-bey-yuh] / əˈbeɪ yə /

noun

1. a coarse, felted fabric woven of camel's or goat's hair.

2. a loose, sleeveless outer garment made of this fabric or of silk, worn by Arabs.

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abaya British  

/ əˈbaɪə /

noun

1. a long black long-sleeved robe worn by Muslim women in Arabic-speaking countries, often with a headscarf or veil

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Etymology

Origin of abaya

First recorded in 1805–15; from Arabic ʿabā'(ah)

Example Sentences

"I love Israel so much," she said, smiling in her head-to-toe black abaya.

From Barron's • Feb. 20, 2026

Some post photos of themselves in traditional Saudi dress: for men a thobe and headdress, for women an abaya and headscarf.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 14, 2026

These included calls for an end to the guardianship system and videos of her shopping without an abaya, they added.

From BBC • May 1, 2024

“For me, the abaya is not a religious garb. It’s a kind of fashion,” Abdallah Zekri, a leader of the French Council for the Muslim Faith, said on the news station BFMTV.

From Seattle Times • Aug. 28, 2023

I finish buttoning up the abaya and wait as Sausun does some complicated thing with the head scarf portion of the outfit.

From "Saints and Misfits" by S.K. Ali