bonnet
/ˈbɑnɪt/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: 3.35 in modern English
8
Scrabble Score
6
Letters
2
Syllables
5
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
A type of hat, once widely worn by women or children, held in place by ribbons tied under the chin; now uncommonly worn except in certain religious sects.
noun
A mushroom-shaped satin cap with an elastic headband used to protect kinky hair, especially while sleeping.
noun
A length of canvas attached to a fore-and-aft sail to increase the pulling power.
noun
An accomplice of a gambler, auctioneer, etc., who entices others to bet or to bid.
Obsolete; Slang
noun
The second stomach of a ruminant.
Example Sentences
- "In the hall, Scarlett saw a bonnet and put it on hurriedly, tying the ribbons under her chin. It was Melanie's black mourning bonnet and it did not fit Scarlett's head but she could not recall where she had put her own bonnet."
- "“Now,” said he, “put such a bonnet as that in the show window.” He did not fill his show-window up town with a lot of hats and bonnets to drive people away, and then sit on the back stairs and bawl because people went to Wanamaker's to trade."
- "A shock-head of red hair, which the hat and periwig of the Lowland costume had in a great measure concealed, was seen beneath the Highland bonnet, and verified the epithet of Roy, or Red, by which he was much better known in the low country than by any other, and is still, I suppose, best remembered."
- "Even dressing, you know, back in the day, you only had two pair of pants, those two pair of pants better be polished and clean every day, even if those were the only two pair of pants you had. Nowadays it's like, nobody cares, people walk around with bonnets on their head, and there's no sense of pride in anything."
- "Make sure that the power buffer's lamb's-wool bonnet is clean. Change or rinse the bonnet frequently to avoid scratching the finish. Use the bonnet as a mitten to buff in the crevices and other areas that the power buffer can't reach."
- "The car is burgundy red, wide and elegant, ten years old but still the boys are impressed and they run to touch it, pressing sticky handprints against the polished bodywork and trying to climb up onto the bonnet."
Etymology
From Middle English bonet, from Middle French bonet (Modern French bonnet), from Old French bonet (“material from which hats are made”), from Frankish *bunni (“that which is bound”), from Proto-Germanic *bundiją (“bundle”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰendʰ- (“to tie”). Compare also Late Latin abbonis, obbonis (“ribbon of a headdress”), also of Germanic origin, from Frankish *obbunni, from *ob- (“above, over”) + *bunni. Cognate with Old High German gibunt (“band, ribbon”), Middle Dutch bont (“bundle, truss”), Gothic 𐌲𐌰𐌱𐌿𐌽𐌳𐌹 (gabundi, “bond”). More at over, bundle.
Origin
Word Breakdown
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈbɑnɪt/
- British English: /ˈbɒnɪt/