Poonam
name, noun ·Rare ·Advanced level
Definitions
- 1 A sari made of imported polyester, as opposed to a traditional cotton sari. India
"She went on to explain, "Now only old women wear those coarse cotton saris, control cheeralu [cheeralu is the Telugu word for saris]. They are like gunnysacks. Poonams are modern. They are brightly colored and do not fade. But they cling to the body, and you need a separate underskirt and blouse to wear them." Still later she added, "What else will we wear? We work in the field all day -- in the sun, in the rain. Poonams don't tear. They don't fade. They don't crumple. Dirt and mud just wash away. they dry easily.""
- 1 A Hindu female given name from Hindi.
Example
More examples"She went on to explain, "Now only old women wear those coarse cotton saris, control cheeralu [cheeralu is the Telugu word for saris]. They are like gunnysacks. Poonams are modern. They are brightly colored and do not fade. But they cling to the body, and you need a separate underskirt and blouse to wear them." Still later she added, "What else will we wear? We work in the field all day -- in the sun, in the rain. Poonams don't tear. They don't fade. They don't crumple. Dirt and mud just wash away. they dry easily.""
Etymology
From Hindi पूनम (pūnam, “full moon”).
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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.