punkah
or pun·ka
(especially in India) a fan, especially a large, swinging, screenlike fan hung from the ceiling and moved by a servant or by machinery.
of, pertaining to, used on, or working a punkah: punkah ropes.
Origin of punkah
1Words Nearby punkah
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use punkah in a sentence
During meal-times, a large punkah is employed to diffuse an agreeable degree of coolness through the apartment.
A Woman's Journey Round the World | Ida PfeifferEven the private soldier Page 410in Singapore has a punkah pulled over his bed at night.
A Voyage in the 'Sunbeam' | Annie Allnut BrasseyThe carpenter has rigged up a punkah, and the men have improvised some double awnings.
A Voyage in the 'Sunbeam' | Annie Allnut BrasseyIn spite of the exertions of the punkah coolie, the billiard-room of the Occidental Hotel was like the furnace-doors of Sheol.
The Beautiful White Devil | Guy BoothbyInside, the droning whine of the punkah mocks him throughout the weary day, as it scarcely stirs the heated air.
Life in an Indian Outpost | Gordon Casserly
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