Meanings
kumkum1
nounkumkum (uncountable)
alternative kumkuma · alternative kunku · alternative kungumam
- uncountableA red powder, made from saffron or turmeric, used ceremonially by Hindu women to make various markings on the body, especially the tilak.
Saubhagya Devi sent Alak Kishori to fetch kumkum.
2015, Tridip Suhrud, translating Govardhanram Madhavram Tripathi, Sarasvatichandra I, Orient BlackSwan 2015, p. 1341 more example
A maid passed her the gold thali with a lamp and kumkum and turmeric powder in it.
1997, Kiran Nagarkar, Cuckold, HarperCollins, published 2013, page 197
Kumkum2
proper noun
- A female given name from Sanskrit used in India.
Synonyms & antonyms
Also see
Origin
kumkum · noun
- Sanskritकुङ्कुम
- Hindiकुमकुम
- Englishkumkum
From Hindi कुमकुम (kumkum) from Sanskrit कुङ्कुम (kuṅkuma).
More words from Hindi, Sanskrit
Full word history & related roots →Kumkum · proper noun
- Sanskritकुमकुम
- EnglishKumkum
Borrowed from Sanskrit कुमकुम (kumakuma).
More words from Sanskrit
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
APA
kumkum. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/kumkum
MLA
“kumkum.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/kumkum. Accessed November 4, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “kumkum,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/kumkum.
Source: kumkum on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.