turban

American  

[tur-buhn] / ˈtɜr bən /

noun

1. a man's headdress worn chiefly by Muslims in southern Asia, consisting of a long cloth of silk, linen, cotton, etc., wound either about a cap or directly around the head.

2. any headdress resembling this.

3. any of various off-the-face hats for women that are close-fitting, of a soft fabric, and brimless, or that have a narrow, sometimes draped, brim.

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turban British  

/ ˈtɜːbən /

noun

1. a man's headdress, worn esp by Muslims, Hindus, and Sikhs, made by swathing a length of linen, silk, etc, around the head or around a caplike base

2. a woman's brimless hat resembling this

3. any headdress resembling this

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Other Word Forms

• turban-like adjective
• turbaned adjective
• turbanless adjective
• turbanlike adjective
• unturbaned adjective

Etymology

Origin of turban

1555–65; earlier torbant, variant of tulbant < Turkish tülbent < Persian dulband

Example Sentences

Amrit Kaur, a Sikh teacher who grew up in Quebec and who wears a turban, is one of the appellants in the case.

From BBC • Mar. 21, 2026

He studied in a seminary in Qom after his service with the Revolutionary Guard and wears the black turban of a sayyid, indicating that he traces his lineage to the prophet Muhammad.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 9, 2026

Mojtaba Khamenei, a cleric who has a salt-and-pepper beard and the black turban of the "seyyed" -- descendants of the Prophet Mohammed -- is a veteran of the Iran-Iraq war in the 1980s.

From Barron's • Mar. 8, 2026

Wearing a navy blue outfit and white turban, another refugee, Youssouf, was sitting under a shed, his eyes reflecting the trauma of his experiences, when the BBC met him.

From BBC • Nov. 25, 2025

She snapped upright, twisting it into a turban.

From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides

Related Words

• bandana
• hat