mehndi

English

Alternative forms

• mendi, mendy

Etymology

Borrowed from Hindustani مہندی (mihandī) / मेहंदी (mehandī), from Sanskrit मेन्धिका (mendhikā).

Noun

mehndi (countable and uncountable, plural mehndis)

1. (chiefly South Asia, countable) A henna plant (Lawsonia inermis) or (uncountable) a preparation of this used for dyeing. [from 19th c.]
   • 1973, JG Farrell, The Siege of Krishnapur:

     The first lot to be put up was a tin of sugar biscuits and a jar of ‘mendy’, a pomade of native origin for dyeing the hair black.

   • 2023, Radhika Iyengar, Fire on the Ganges, Fourth Estate, page 53:

     She was thirteen, a young bride whose small palms had been stained burgundy with mehndi for a man she knew nothing about, not even his name.

2. (chiefly South Asia) The practice of applying temporary tattoos from this substance, typically as part of a bride or groom's preparations for a wedding; such a tattoo. [from 19th c.]
   • 2010 April 20, Homa Khaleeli, The Guardian:

     Then came the Mehndi ceremony – where henna is painted on the bride's hands and feet, and the bride and groom's family try to outdo each other in singing and dancing.