bindi

noun

bin·​di ˈbin-dē 

plural bindis

: a mark (such as a red dot) or piece of jewelry worn on the middle of the forehead especially by Hindu women

Between her delicate eyebrows is a smudged crimson bindi.

—D. Thomas Minton

The bindi is placed between the eyebrows, the place of the sixth chakra (the seat of concealed wisdom).

—The Tempist

Henna tattoos and bindis, those decorative dots placed between the eyes, grace faces that have never seen beyond the American suburbs.

—Vivian McInerny

Examples of bindi in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

But right then—before COVID lockdowns, before the felony assault case, before the 10-carat bindi—Baby Pluto had the solar system hanging onto every syllable, ready to Futsal Shuffle on command. —Pitchfork, 1 Oct. 2024

Later the sisters went for a rickshaw ride wearing bindis, a circular marking between the eyes which represents the opening of the third eye in Hindu culture. —Staff Author, Peoplemag, 12 July 2024

Satpathy is calm and clad in Odissi dress—elegant silks in deep mauve and bright blue, with wrist and ankle bracelets, hair pinned back, heavy makeup, and a large red bindi on her forehead. —Jennifer Homans, The New Yorker, 8 Jan. 2024

Prior to that, in the 1990s, the ska artist turned pop star often wore a Hindu bindi and styled her hair in South African Bantu knots. —Los Angeles Times, 11 Jan. 2023

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Hindi bindī, literally, "dot, mark" (or a cognate Indo-Aryan word), going back to the Middle Indo-Aryan and Sanskrit stem bindu- "drop, spot," of uncertain origin

First Known Use

1872, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

bindi

noun

bin·​di

ˈbin-dē

: a mark or ornament worn on the middle of the forehead especially by Hindu women