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burka

American  
[boor-kuh, bur-] / ˈbʊər kə, ˈbɜr- /
Also burqa,

noun

  1. a loose garment covering the entire body and having a veiled opening for the eyes, worn by Muslim women.


burka British  
/ ˈbɜːkə /

noun

  1. a variant spelling of burqa

"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

Etymology

Origin of burka

1830–40; < Urdu burgaʿ < dialectal Arabic burqaʿ

Vocabulary lists containing burka

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.

See Examples For:

He also expressed support for a ban on face coverings, like the burka.

From BBC Feb. 23, 2026

The Taliban official also rejected reports that women were banned from medical centres for not wearing the burka.

From BBC Nov. 11, 2025

A burka is a one-piece veil that covers the face and body, often leaving just a mesh screen to see through.

From BBC Nov. 11, 2025

He said tweets he had sent criticising the party's only female MP as "stupid" for raising the issue of whether Britain should ban the burka had been misjudged and that he had been "exhausted".

From BBC Jun. 20, 2025

One of the girls clutched a doll wearing a stained and torn hot pink burka.

From "Shooting Kabul" by N. H. Senzai

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