Word.ws English Dictionary

khanum

khanum is the female equivalent of khan.

Meaning of khan

Noun (1)

khan (plural khans)

  1. (historical) A ruler over various Turkic and Mongol peoples in the Middle Ages.
  2. An Ottoman sultan.
  3. A noble or man of rank in various Muslim countries of Central Asia, including Afghanistan.

Noun (2)

khan (plural khans)

  1. Synonym of caravanserai (particularly in Middle Eastern contexts)
    • ‘Guess the name of that,’ she said, pointing to her delicate parts. The porter tried this name and that and ended by asking her to tell him and cease her slapping. ‘The khān of Abu-Mansur,’ she replied.1923, Powys Mathers, transl., The Thousand Nights and One Night
    Synonyms:
    caravanserai
  2. Synonym of fonduk (“inn or hotel in Middle Eastern contexts”).
    Synonyms:
    fonduk

See all 7 meanings of khan

Forms of khanum

pluralkhanums
alternative formkhanoum

Origin of khanum

Borrowed from Ottoman Turkish خانم, from Proto-Turkic *kagan. Compare Old Anatolian Turkish خانم (ḫānum), Chagatai خانِم (xānım), and Classical Persian خانم (xānum), a Turkic borrowing. Compare begum for an analogous development.

Questions about khanum

What is khanum the female equivalent of?
Khanum is the female equivalent of khan.

Words near khanum in the dictionary

  1. Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug
  2. Khanty-Mansiysk
  3. Khantys
  4. Khanuka
  5. Khanukah
  6. khanum
  7. khanums
  8. Khanzadian
  9. Khanzadians
  10. khao mahk
  11. Khao Manee

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: khanum (page history and authors); khan (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Cite this entry: “khanum.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/khanum. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.