Afghan
noun
a native or inhabitant of Afghanistan.
Afghan
American
[af-gan, -guhn]
/ ˈæf gæn, -gən /
noun
Afghans
plural
-
a native or inhabitant of Afghanistan.
-
afghan, a soft woolen blanket, crocheted or knitted, usually in a geometric pattern.
-
Also called Afghan hound. one of a breed of swift hunting hounds having a long, narrow head and a long, silky coat.
-
Literary. Pashto.
adjective
Afghan
1
British
/ -ɡən, æfˈɡænɪ, ˈæfɡæn, -ˈɡɑː- /
noun
-
a native, citizen, or inhabitant of Afghanistan
-
another name for Pashto
-
history an Indian camel driver employed in the outback of Australia
adjective
afghan
2
British
/ -ɡən, ˈæfɡæn /
noun
-
a knitted or crocheted wool blanket or shawl, esp one with a geometric pattern
-
a sheepskin coat, often embroidered and having long fur trimming around the edges
Usage
See afghani.
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of Afghan
First recorded in 1740–50; from Persian afghān “inhabitant of the Hindu Kush; a Pathan“
Explanation
An afghan is a knitted or crocheted blanket. You might spend Friday night curled up on the couch under an afghan watching old movies on TV. Many afghans are made from individual crocheted squares — called "granny squares" — stitched together into one big, multicolored blanket. Other afghans are striped or composed of large blocks of color. The connection of the name afghan with the people or country of Afghanistan is unclear, though some crochet and knitting fans believe that the original afghans, first made in the 1800s, were influenced by multi-colored blankets from that country.
Vocabulary lists containing afghan
English Words Derived from Arabic
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
In March, an Afghan man who once fought alongside U.S. troops died of an allergic reaction.
From Slate ● Jul. 8, 2026
There was fierce fighting along the frontier during that conflict and unprecedented Pakistani airstrikes on Afghan cities, including the capital and southern Kandahar where the Afghan Taliban's supreme leader is based.
From Barron's ● Jun. 29, 2026
A second man, Afghan national Tajik Mohammed, was given a two-year sentence after pleading guilty to piloting a vessel across the Channel during poor weather conditions in January.
From BBC ● Jun. 10, 2026
In one clip, some protesters can be heard chanting "education, work, freedom", the BBC's Afghan service reported.
From BBC ● Jun. 9, 2026
The men’s section of the mosque was a large square room, covered with Afghan rugs and thin mattresses placed in parallel lines.
From "The Kite Runner" by Khaled Hosseini
Valley College, her crocheted afghan flying like a kite.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 12, 2024
Since September, Minnesota has welcomed 721 afghan evacuees according to the Minnesota Department of Human Services.
From Fox News ● Jan. 20, 2022
I wrote early on in that essay, trying to conjure the first moment I ever saw one as an infant — my parent's afghan hound, Easy.
From Salon ● Jul. 25, 2021
There was Peggy Foster, 82, an afghan over her shoulders, Ralph Lucas, 84, the only man in the group, and Jean Rose, 96, who kept surprising herself with the success of her rolls.
From New York Times ● Feb. 12, 2021
Then she wrapped her afghan around herself and bowed her head as if it were the lowering of a theater curtain.
From "Dead End in Norvelt" by Jack Gantos
While border officials contact authorities nationwide to verify the identity of those who don't have any form of ID, the process for newly arrived Afghans can be bewildering.
From Barron's ● Jul. 3, 2026
At Omari camp, Nazamin Baloch didn't know how to get an ID card but knew from other Afghans that it was "important for everything".
From Barron's ● Jul. 3, 2026
Mahmout Keçen, another migrant-rights activist based in Van, said the nature of the mountains "most commonly used by Afghans entering Turkey irregularly" meant crossings had to be made in difficult, risky weather conditions.
From BBC ● Jul. 1, 2026
In 2022, South Korea helped roughly 400 Afghans leave their country after the Taliban seized power, but it designated them as “special contributors” rather than refugees because they had employment ties with South Korean agencies.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 28, 2026
“Fremont has the largest population of Afghans in the United States,” said Uncle Amin.
From "Shooting Kabul" by N. H. Senzai
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.