Babushka

Pronunciation

• UK IPA: /bəˈbuːʃ.kÉ™/

Alternative forms

• babooshka, baboushka

Origin

From Russian ба́бушка ("grandmother, granny"), diminutive of ба́ба ("old woman").

Full definition of babushka

Noun

1. An old woman.
2. A woman’s headscarf, tied under the chin.
• 1982, TC Boyle, Water Music, Penguin 2006, p. 78:The crowd falls silent, momentarily stunned, while a heavyset woman in a babushka pushes her way through, broadcasting the news ….
3. Russian doll, matryoshka (mistranslation)