Purdah

/ˈpɜːdə/ · noun

Meaning

(countable, chiefly South Asia, also figuratively) A curtain, especially one used in some Hindu or Muslim traditions to conceal women from the gaze of people, particularly men and strangers..

Definitions by Sense

1. (countable, chiefly South Asia, also figuratively) A curtain, especially one used in some Hindu or Muslim traditions to conceal women from the gaze of people, particularly men and strangers.
2. A long veil or other attire covering most of the body, worn by women in some Muslim societies.
3. The situation or system of secluding women from the gaze of people, particularly men and strangers, in some Muslim and Hindu traditions, by using a curtain or screen, and/or wearing a face veil or attire covering most of the body.
4. Keeping apart; isolation, seclusion; also, concealment, secrecy.
5. The period between the announcement of an election or referendum and its conclusion, during which civil servants refrain from making policy announcements or taking actions that could be seen as advantageous to certain candidates in the election.
6. A striped cotton cloth which is used to make curtains.

Example Sentences

As she passed through the dining-room she heard, behind the purdah that cloaked the drawing-room door, her husband's voice, […]

"Come and see my wife a little then," said Hamidullah, and they spent twenty minutes behind the purdah.

He was won by her love for him, by a loyalty that implied something more than submission, and by her efforts to educate herself against that lifting of the purdah that would come in the next generation if not in theirs.

The diagnosis of Kit's malady was soon verified, and Fleur went into purdah.

Still, though the lettrist movement was not casual—members might be fined, put in purdah, or even expelled for malingering—aesthetic pluralism remained in effect.

Despite Rail Minister Chris Heaton-Harris's reassurance that "the White Paper is coming" it was further delayed by the period of purdah that preceded local elections held on May 6.

Synonyms for purdah

Antonyms for purdah

Related Words

Word Forms

• purdahs
• pardah
• purda

Usage Notes

Choose a synonym only when it preserves the intended meaning, tone, and grammar of the full sentence.

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