headscarf

noun

head·​scarf ˈhed-ˌskärf 

plural headscarves ˈhed-ˌskärvz  also headscarfs

: a fabric covering for the head worn especially by women

… young, well-educated European Muslim women who wear the headscarf as a conscious, articulate choice …

—Timothy Garton Ash

The stereotypical fortuneteller, a wizened old woman in a fringed headscarf hunched over a crystal ball …

—Louise Erdich

The US Justice Department, for example, has supported the right of Muslim girls to wear headscarves in public schools.

—Robert O. Paxton

Examples of headscarf in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Blanco threw up a peace sign while Gomez posed in front in a headscarf and sunglasses. — Chiara Kim, PEOPLE, 21 July 2026

Fatma Chouchane, a volunteer at the Grand Mosque, lamented restrictions on women wearing Muslim headscarves in French schools and some workplaces. — ABC News, 18 July 2026

There were turbans and headscarves and oversized hair bows, and a young boy wearing a crown made from red, black and yellow paper, the colors representing Black history month. — Mary Carole McCauley, Baltimore Sun, 20 June 2026

In addition to headscarves, pistachio is another personal favorite of Shnaider’s. — Rosemary Feitelberg, Footwear News, 4 June 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1688, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for headscarf

• scarf
• scharf