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Bengali

American  
[ben-gaw-lee, -gah-, beng-] / bɛnˈgɔ li, -ˈgɑ-, bɛŋ- /

noun

  1. a native or an inhabitant of Bengal; Bengalese.

  2. an Indic language spoken in E India and Bangladesh.

  3. Bengalee.

adjective

  1. of or relating to Bengal, its inhabitants, or their language; Bengalese.

Bengali British  
/ bɛŋ-, bɛnˈɡɔːlɪ /

noun

  1. a member of a people living chiefly in Bangladesh and in West Bengal. The West Bengalis are mainly Hindus; the East Bengalis of Bangladesh are mainly Muslims

  2. Also called: Bangla.  the language of this people: the official language of Bangladesh and the chief language of West Bengal; it belongs to the Indic branch of the Indo-European family

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

adjective

  1. of or relating to Bengal, the Bengalis, or their language

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

"I am a Pakistani, but I don't have my identity card," another 22-year-old Bengali, Ahmed, told AFP.

From Barron's • Feb. 23, 2026

In a message posted in Bengali, Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated BNP leader Tarique Rahman, the 60-year-old dynast, on a "decisive victory".

From BBC • Feb. 14, 2026

In our Bengali household, traditional rice pudding is called Payesh.

From Salon • Jan. 10, 2026

He made campaign videos in Hindi and Bengali, among other languages.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 19, 2025

She'll still have an American passport, but she can go back to being a Bengali at heart.

From "You Bring the Distant Near" by Mitali Perkins

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.