Illustration of wimple
- wimple 1
1
: a cloth covering worn over the head and around the neck and chin especially by women in the late medieval period and by some nuns
wimpled; wimpling
ˈwim-p(ə-)liŋ 
Did you know?
Wimple is the name of the covering worn over the head and around the neck and chin by women in the late medieval period, as well as by some modern nuns. Its name is akin to Old Saxon "wimpal" and Middle Dutch "wimpel," both of which mean "veil" or "banner." Like the word veil, "wimple" is also used as a verb meaning "cover" and was adopted by literary writers as a substitute for "ripple" and "meander," especially when writing about streams. "Over the little brook which wimpled along below towered an arch," James Russell Lowell once observed.
Examples of wimple in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Guy Lodge, Variety, 19 Aug. 2022
Who would have guessed that Sister Frances's wimple was hiding Bruccoleri's becoming bangs.
—Lauren Hubbard, Town & Country, 17 Mar. 2022
Regardless of your interpretation, her motive was to regain a sense of power over her body, to take back the sexuality that was sheathed in a red robe and cropped wimple.
—Hillary Kelly, Vulture, 2 June 2021
Under the wimple, her face had a beatific glow that lit up the stage.
—Matthew J. Palm, orlandosentinel.com, 5 Dec. 2019
There were trains by the yard obstructing traffic, and a full complement of halos, wimples, tiaras and crowns.
—Matthew Schneier, New York Times, 8 May 2018
Noun
Is Philine a psychotic demon in a wimple, or a terrified and terrifying product of an old-school strain of Catholicism that prizes showy denial and self-discipline over sincere benevolence?
—Guy Lodge, Variety, 19 Aug. 2022
Who would have guessed that Sister Frances's wimple was hiding Bruccoleri's becoming bangs.
—Lauren Hubbard, Town & Country, 17 Mar. 2022
Regardless of your interpretation, her motive was to regain a sense of power over her body, to take back the sexuality that was sheathed in a red robe and cropped wimple.
—Hillary Kelly, Vulture, 2 June 2021
Under the wimple, her face had a beatific glow that lit up the stage.
—Matthew J. Palm, orlandosentinel.com, 5 Dec. 2019
There were trains by the yard obstructing traffic, and a full complement of halos, wimples, tiaras and crowns.
—Matthew Schneier, New York Times, 8 May 2018
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'wimple.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near wimple
Cite this Entry
“Wimple.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/wimple. Accessed 16 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share