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• Afghan
  Afghan

  noun

  a native or inhabitant of Afghanistan.
• afghan
  afghan

  noun

  a knitted or crocheted wool blanket or shawl, esp one with a geometric pattern

Afghan

American  

[af-gan, -guhn] / ˈæf gæn, -gən /

noun

Afghans plural

1. a native or inhabitant of Afghanistan.

2. afghan, a soft woolen blanket, crocheted or knitted, usually in a geometric pattern.

3. Also called Afghan hound.  one of a breed of swift hunting hounds having a long, narrow head and a long, silky coat.

4. Literary. Pashto.

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adjective

1. of Afghanistan or its people or language.

Afghan ¹ British  

/ -ɡən, æfˈɡænɪ, ˈæfɡæn, -ˈɡɑː- /

noun

1. a native, citizen, or inhabitant of Afghanistan

2. another name for Pashto

3. history an Indian camel driver employed in the outback of Australia

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adjective

1. denoting or relating to Afghanistan, its people, or their language

afghan ² British  

/ -ɡən, ˈæfɡæn /

noun

1. a knitted or crocheted wool blanket or shawl, esp one with a geometric pattern

2. a sheepskin coat, often embroidered and having long fur trimming around the edges

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Usage

See afghani.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• Afghans
  plural

Etymology

Origin of Afghan

First recorded in 1740–50; from Persian afghān “inhabitant of the Hindu Kush; a Pathan“

Explanation

An afghan is a knitted or crocheted blanket. You might spend Friday night curled up on the couch under an afghan watching old movies on TV. Many afghans are made from individual crocheted squares — called "granny squares" — stitched together into one big, multicolored blanket. Other afghans are striped or composed of large blocks of color. The connection of the name afghan with the people or country of Afghanistan is unclear, though some crochet and knitting fans believe that the original afghans, first made in the 1800s, were influenced by multi-colored blankets from that country.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Afghan afghan Afghans

In March, an Afghan man who once fought alongside U.S. troops died of an allergic reaction.

From Slate ● Jul. 8, 2026

There was fierce fighting along the frontier during that conflict and unprecedented Pakistani airstrikes on Afghan cities, including the capital and southern Kandahar where the Afghan Taliban's supreme leader is based.

From Barron's ● Jun. 29, 2026

Two spokesmen for the Afghan government did not respond to AFP's requests to comment on the decision.

From Barron's ● Jun. 17, 2026

Sentencing Tajik, the judge noted that the Afghan national let go of the tiller as rescuers arrived, which resulted in the boat spinning around, further increasing the threat to those on board.

From BBC ● Jun. 10, 2026

He wore traditional Afghan clothes, and a bright, colorful cap covered his balding head.

From "Shooting Kabul" by N. H. Senzai

Gilbert: The couch and afghan, along with the entire main kitchen and living room set are in Carsey Werner’s storage.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 9, 2025

It’s a form of manipulation and control like any other — except crocheted into an afghan and presented as love.

From Washington Post ● Aug. 17, 2022

Since September, Minnesota has welcomed 721 afghan evacuees according to the Minnesota Department of Human Services.

From Fox News ● Jan. 20, 2022

I wrote early on in that essay, trying to conjure the first moment I ever saw one as an infant — my parent's afghan hound, Easy.

From Salon ● Jul. 25, 2021

Turner stood, and Lizzie pulled the afghan up around Mrs. Cobb’s knees.

From "Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy" by Gary D. Schmidt

At Omari camp, Nazamin Baloch didn't know how to get an ID card but knew from other Afghans that it was "important for everything".

From Barron's ● Jul. 3, 2026

He has worked on numerous cases involving Afghans and other migrants who alleged "ill-treatment, push-backs, denial of access to asylum procedures, and forced returns" around the Iran-Turkey border region.

From BBC ● Jul. 1, 2026

He was quoted as saying that the dead included three Afghans and a Pakistani, all working in agriculture.

From BBC ● Jun. 2, 2026

In 2022, South Korea helped roughly 400 Afghans leave their country after the Taliban seized power, but it designated them as “special contributors” rather than refugees because they had employment ties with South Korean agencies.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 28, 2026

Zendagi migzara, Afghans like to say: Life goes on, unmindful of beginning, end, kamyab, nah-kam, crisis or catharsis, moving forward like a slow, dusty car­avan of kochis.

From "The Kite Runner" by Khaled Hosseini