Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun One that fascinates.
  • noun A woman's headscarf.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun One who or that which fascinates.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun A fascinating person
  • noun A delicate, often frivolous head decoration worn on the hair, primarily by women
  • noun dated, US A type of wool or lace headscarf

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

fascinate +‎ -or

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Examples

  • She sat crocheting what she called a fascinator, her white bone needle moving harmoniously in and out of the blue wool.

    The Madigans Miriam Michelson 1906

  • She was what I remember my father calling a fascinator.

    Kalooki Nights Howard Jacobson 2006

  • On the Right: My personal pick of the best fascinator (A fascinator is a hat that isn't really a hat).

    Australian Politics 2008

  • Jaya was so excited about her pink dress and her "fascinator"!

    tequilamonky Diary Entry tequilamonky 2009

  • Another word I have heard used in the guru context is "fascinator" You are probably tuning in to beings in the astral which overlaps with the IZ; all these realities merge and inter-shade; there are lots of astral IZ beings that claim to be ascended masters and so on.

    Blavatsky, Alice Bailey and Jane Robert Tusar N Mohapatra 2006

  • However, I managed to keep pretty comfortable and snug in "fascinator" and muckluks, enveloped as I was in my Indian blanket.

    A Woman who went to Alaska May Kellogg Sullivan

  • On my head I wore a pink crocheted affair, called sometimes a "fascinator," which was now used simply and solely for service, I assured my friends, and not from any lighter motive, -- but my feet!

    A Woman who went to Alaska May Kellogg Sullivan

  • Fanny learned that the mill girls liked the bright-colored and expensive wares, and why; she learned that the woman with the "fascinator" (tragic misnomer!) over her head wanted the finest sled for her boy.

    Fanny Herself Edna Ferber 1926

  • Fanny learned that the mill girls liked the bright-colored and expensive wares, and why; she learned that the woman with the "fascinator" (tragic misnomer!) over her head wanted the finest sled for her boy.

    Fanny Herself 1917

  • Mrs. Harsanyi took her into her own room and helped her take off her country "fascinator" and her clumsy plush cape.

    The song of the lark 1915

Comments

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  • A headpiece worn on the hair, almost exclusively by women. It's commonly made with feathers, flowers, and/or beads.

    April 17, 2008

  • I'm scalpsmacked.

    April 17, 2008

  • I like the "almost exclusively" bit. Have you ever seen a guy wear one of these things?

    Well, okay...I have. But I have odd friends.

    April 17, 2008

  • Uhh ...

    I'm MC for a poetry gig tomorrow and one of my performers is called Noodle E-String (real name). I wonder if he might turn up wearing a fascinator.

    April 17, 2008

  • With a name like that, I'd be surprised if he didn't.

    April 18, 2008

  • This word was chosen as Wordnik word of the day.

    November 11, 2009