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hair definition

hair (her, har)

noun

  1. any of the fine, threadlike outgrowths from the skin of an animal or human being
  2. a growth of these; esp.,
    1. the growth covering the human head
    2. the growth covering all or part of the skin of most mammals
  3. material woven from hair
  4. an extremely small space, margin, degree, etc. to miss by a hair
  5. Bot. a threadlike growth on a plant; trichome

Etymology: ME here < OE hær (akin to Ger haar, Frank *harja) & < ? OFr haire, hair shirt < Frank *harja < IE base *er(s)-, to bristle

adjective

  1. made of or with hair
  2. for the care of the hair hair tonic

Related Forms:

hair Idioms

get in one's hair

☆
Slang to annoy one

hair of the dog (that bit one)

Informal a drink of alcoholic liquor taken as a supposed cure for a hangover

have (or get) by the short hairs

Slang to have (or get) completely at one's mercy

let one's hair down

Slang to be very informal, relaxed, and free in behavior

make one's hair stand on end

to terrify or horrify one

not turn a hair

to show no fear, surprise, embarrassment, etc.; stay calm and unruffled

split hairs

to make petty distinctions; quibble

to a hair

exactly; right in every detail

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2005 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Alternate definitions:

idioms hair idiom

medical hair definition - medical

hair Synonyms

hair

n.

  1. Threadlike growth

    locks, tresses, wig, moustache, whiskers, eyebrow, eyelash, thatch, sideburn, down, tress, wool, shock, mane, filament, fluff; see also beard, fur.

  2. One threadlike growth

    whisker, cilium, bristle, vibrissa, striga, villus; see also fiber 1, thread.

  3. Anything suggesting the thickness of a hair

    filament, strand, thread, fiber, a hairbreadth, a narrow margin, whisker, nose, hair trigger, hairspring, splinter, shaving, sliver; see also bit 3.

get in one's hair*

irritate, annoy, disturb; see bother 2.

have by the short hairs*

have at one's mercy, victimize, have over a barrel*; see defeat 1.

let one's hair down*

relax, be informal, have fun, let oneself go; see relax 1.

make one's hair stand on end

terrify, scare, horrify; see frighten 1.

split hairs

quibble, cavil, nag; see fight 1.

to a hair

precisely, perfectly, right in every detail; see exactly.


Webster's New World Roget's A-Z Thesaurus Copyright © 1999 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

hair Usage Examples

Converse of object

  • comb: He wore the same dark jacket and she thought he looked better this time, his hair combed, parted in the middle.

Adjective modifier

  • blond: Long blond hair, hazel eyes, enjoy working out at the gym.

Modifies a noun

  • dryer: A hair dryer or paint stripping heat gun is a handy tool.

Noun used with modifier

  • ginger: Brad is easy to spot with his big mop of ginger hair!

Possessives

  • breadth: The third round seemed to miss the thing's tail by a hair's breadth.

Preposition: in

  • curler: The hairdresser arrived at 7.30 to put my hair in curlers.
hair usage examples (more)

The word usage examples above have been gathered from various sources to reflect current and historical usage. They do not represent the opinions of YourDictionary.com.

hair quotes

You will never get on in politics, my dear, with that hair.

-Viscountess ne¤  e Langhorne

   When a woman ceases to alter the fashion of her hair, you guess that she has passed the crisis of her experience.

-Austin, Mary Hunter

Marie Hamilton's to the kirk gane, Wi'ribbons in her hair; The king thought mair o'Marie Hamilton Than ony that were there.

-Ballads

hair quotes (more)

Webster's New World Dictionary of Quotations Copyright © 2005 by Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved. Published by Wiley, Hoboken, NJ. Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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MLA Style

"hair." Webster's New World College Dictionary. 2009

  • Your Dictionary. 5 July 2009
  • <www.yourdictionary.com/hair>

APA Style

hair. (2009). In Webster's New World College Dictionary

  • Retrieved July 5th, 2009, from www.yourdictionary.com/hair

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