Merriam-Webster Logo
SINCE 1828
Menu
×

An Encyclopædia Britannica Company

See What's Trending Now See More Trending Words
1

Hindu

noun Hin·du \ ˈhin-(ˌ)dü \
variants: or less commonly Hindoo

Definition of Hindu

1 :an adherent of Hinduism
2 :a native or inhabitant of India

See Hindu defined for English-language learners

See Hindu defined for kids

People Are Reading

alt-59e900afadac6
The Synonyms 'Discover' and 'Invent'
tycoon
17 English Words that Come From Japanese
alt-59e8af1b31525
Trending: NY Times: Trump's Call Ignites 'Imbroglio'
video-title-words-of-the-year-1066
Words of the Year: 1066

Origin and Etymology of hindu

Persian Hindū inhabitant of India, from Hind India

2

Hindu

adjective
variants: or less commonly Hindoo

Definition of Hindu

:of, relating to, or characteristic of the Hindus or Hinduism

First Known Use of hindu

1698

HINDU Defined for English Language Learners

Hindu

noun

Definition of Hindu for English Language Learners

  • : a follower of Hinduism

HINDU Defined for Kids

Hindu

noun Hin·du \ ˈhin-ˌdü \

Definition of Hindu for Students

:a person who follows Hinduism

Learn More about hindu

  1. See words that rhyme with Hindu Spanish Central: Translation of Hindu Nglish: Translation of Hindu for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of Hindu for Arabic speakers

Seen and Heard

What made you want to look up Hindu? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

show hide

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

WORD OF THE DAY

knee-jerk

play

readily predictable

Get Word of the Day daily email!

TRENDING NOW

  1. imbroglio "a public scandal"

  2. spurious of a deceitful nature or quality

  3. righteous We provide an assortment of definitions

  4. Kafkaesque 'A nightmarish quality'

  5. mike "microphone"

SEE ALL

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Test Your Vocabulary

The Exceptions Quiz III

  • one-green-toy-robot-amidst-many-red-toy-robots
  • Which of these words does not mean "nonsense"?
Spell It

Can you spell these 10 commonly misspelled words?

TAKE THE QUIZ
Word Winder's CrossWinder

Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.

TAKE THE QUIZ

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Words at Play

alt-59e900afadac6
The Synonyms 'Discover' and 'Invent'

In the past, you could invent fruit.

alt-59e8c3440f453
I'll Have the Us(ual)

Shortening 'usual': easy to say, hard to spell

alt-59e77dc36c593
The Origins of 'Lobbyist'

From the front hallways to the back rooms

alt-59e673567065d
The History of the Word 'Terrorism'

Noah Webster first entered the term in 1840

Ask the Editors

video-title-words-of-the-year-1066
Words of the Year: 1066

Or, Why Pig Meat is Called 'Pork' and Cow Meat is Called 'Beef'

payday
How Often Is 'Biweekly'?

Don't get us started on 'bimonthly'

video-irregardless-grammar-peeve-blend-of-the-synonyms-irrespective-and-regardless
Irregardless

It is in fact a real word (but that doesn't mean you should use it).

video-moose-goose-weird-plurals
Weird Plurals

One goose, two geese. One moose, two... moose. What's up with that?

Word Games

one-green-toy-robot-amidst-many-red-toy-robots
The Exceptions Quiz III

Which of these things doesn't belong?

Take the quiz
knupfer-painting-solon-before-croesus
Forms of Government Quiz

Name that government! Or something like that.

Take the quiz
Spell It
Spell It

Can you spell these 10 commonly misspelled words?

Take the quiz
Word Winder's CrossWinder
Word Winder's CrossWinder

A game of winding words.

Play the game