houri

[ hoo r-ee, houuh r-ee, hou-uh-ree ]

/ ˈhʊər i, ˈhaʊər i, ˈhaʊ ə ri /

noun, plural hou·ris.

one of the beautiful virgins provided in paradise for all faithful Muslims.

Nearby words

Origin of houri

1730–40; < French < Persian hūrī < Arabic ḥūr plural of ḥaurāʾ gazelle-eyed (woman)

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for houris

Abad thought her nothing inferior to the Houris of Paradise.
The Mirror of Literature, Amusement, and Instruction, Vol. 14, Issue 404, December 12, 1829|Various
Won't there be plenty of houris there, with all their beauty and virtue, but without their extravagance and wilfulness?
Continental Monthly , Vol. 5, No. 6, June, 1864|Various
I mean the real thing, not the Byronic dandy with his bright costume and four or five houris and lovely homes on coral strands.
A Tale of Two Tunnels|William Clark Russell
My houris are making progress, and their education is improving.
French and Oriental Love in a Harem|Mario Uchard

Women have never been so fond of hunting, beer or blood; and their houris would be of the other kind.
Our Androcentric Culture, or The Man Made World|Charlotte Perkins Gilman

British Dictionary definitions for houris

houri

/ (ˈhʊərɪ) /

noun plural -ris

(in Muslim belief) any of the nymphs of Paradise

any alluring woman

Word Origin for houri

C18: from French, from Persian hūri, from Arabic hūr, plural of haurā' woman with dark eyes

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

Word Origin and History for houris

houri

"nymph of Muslim paradise," 1737, from French houri (1650s), from Persian huri "nymph in Paradise," from Arabic haura "to be beautifully dark-eyed," like a gazelle + -i, Persian formative element denoting the singular.