braid
Americanverb (used with object)
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braids,
present (3rd person singular)
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braided,
past participle, past
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braiding
present participle
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to weave together strips or strands of; plait.
to braid the hair.
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to form by such weaving.
to braid a rope.
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to bind or confine (the hair) with a band, ribbon, etc.
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to trim with braid, as a garment.
noun
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braids
plural
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a braided length or plait, especially of hair.
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a hairstyle formed by interweaving three or more strands of hair.
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a narrow, ropelike band formed by plaiting or weaving together several strands of silk, cotton, or other material, used as trimming for garments, drapery, etc.
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a band, ribbon, etc., for binding or confining the hair.
verb
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to interweave several strands of (hair, thread, etc); plait
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to make by such weaving
to braid a rope
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to dress or bind (the hair) with a ribbon, etc
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to decorate with an ornamental trim or border
to braid a skirt
noun
-
a length of hair, fabric, etc, that has been braided; plait
-
narrow ornamental tape of woven silk, wool, etc
adjective
adverb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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braidsimple
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braidssimple
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have braidedperfect
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has braidedperfect
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am braidingprogressive
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are braidingprogressive
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is braidingprogressive
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have been braidingperfect progressive
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has been braidingperfect progressive
Past
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braidedsimple
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had braidedperfect
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was braidingprogressive
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were braidingprogressive
-
had been braidingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of braid
First recorded before 950; Middle English braiden, breiden (verb), Old English bregdan “to move quickly, move to and fro, weave”; cognate with Old Norse bregtha, Dutch breien
Explanation
To braid is to lace or weave together. Hair that has been done this way is in braids. Have you ever seen someone with their hair bound together in thick, rope-like arrangements? That hairdo is called braids. Women often braid each other's hair or get it braided by a hairdresser. The longer your hair, the longer your potential braids. To braid hair, you have to weave the strands of hair together: this is also called plaiting, lacing, and interlacing. Other materials can be braided, but the most popular thing to braid is definitely hair.
Vocabulary lists containing braid
Shear Genius: Hairy Vocabulary
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List 1
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Buffalo Dreamer
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
In the middle of all this activity stands Noah, a red-cheeked, curly-haired little boy with nothing to braid.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 13, 2026
Even if they started out reticent, the fathers became active participants, asking questions about creating a neat French braid, what to do about tangled ponytails and how to deal with frightened children, Lin said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 19, 2026
Or made by the woman in your apartment building who has both a co-op volunteering shift and a single, long gray braid.
From Salon ● Jan. 13, 2026
Those are the two pieces that braid together so nicely.
From Slate ● Jan. 10, 2026
Moving on to the other front section, Bat focused on making the second braid even better than the first.
From "A Boy Called Bat" by Elana K. Arnold
The BSA wrote that "traditional aquatic headwear", like swimming caps, "doesn't cater to children with longer, thicker afro hair, nor does it cater to traditionally Black hairstyles including braids, dreadlocks and twists with extensions".
From BBC ● Aug. 31, 2026
Dressed in svelte black athleisure with a close-cropped haircut, the 28-year-old Lacy was less flamboyant than he’d looked in recent years, when he sported long braids and sunglasses that covered half his head.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 22, 2026
In New York, lawmakers have introduced legislation that would require manufacturers of synthetic braids and hair extensions to disclose all ingredients.
From Science Daily ● Feb. 19, 2026
Once Chantel returns home and finishes Sydney’s braids, T.J. sends the chef off with a tight embrace and the ultimate compliment.
From Salon ● Oct. 25, 2025
From under her pointy hat fell a cascade of gray braids that she always had done in the colder months, her tight curls loose and flowing whenever it was warm out.
From "Witchlings" by Claribel A. Ortega
They tend to be little, plump, tucked in, braided or rolled up; they have the proportions of toys.
From Salon ● Sep. 7, 2026
Prof Ramesh says a CME occurs when these twisting, looping lines - which resemble braided hair - rupture, throwing out massive clouds of magnetised plasma and gas in space.
From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026
They walk the streets pomaded, braided, wearing strangely arranged hairdos meant to call attention to themselves.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 3, 2026
Another young migrant, 18-year-old Matar Top, who has braided hair, arrived from Senegal three years ago with similar hopes of sending money home.
From Barron's ● Jun. 3, 2026
The person coming out of the trees was dressed in armor, her golden hair braided around the crown of her head.
From Anya and the Nightingale by Sofiya Pasternack
Deep in a braiding craze, the children can’t resist braiding everything in sight: hair, shoelaces, even the tails of the classroom’s toy ponies.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 13, 2026
With a few snips of her scissors, a plain whiteboard rag transforms into three strips of cloth perfect for braiding.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 13, 2026
Lives are altered as the salon workers go about their day braiding the hair of customers who range from docile and caring to feisty and acrimonious.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 7, 2025
It was with my editor, Damian Rodriguez, a process of interweaving and braiding those three strands.
From Salon ● May 23, 2025
They don’t mind braiding hair, painting nails, while I sit one step behind them, drawing maps, studying mazes.
From "Paradise on Fire" by Jewell Parker Rhodes
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
