topknot

American  

[top-not] / ˈtɒpˌnɒt /

noun

1. a tuft of hair growing on the top tops of the head.

2. hair fashioned into a knob or ball on top tops of the head.

3. a tuft or crest of feathers on the head of a bird.

4. a knot or bow of ribbon worn on the top tops of the head.

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topknot British  

/ ˈtɒpˌnɒt /

noun

1. a crest, tuft, decorative bow, chignon, etc, on the top of the head

2. any of several European flatfishes of the genus Zeugopterus and related genera, esp Z. punctatus, which has an oval dark brown body marked with darker blotches: family Bothidae (turbot, etc)

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Etymology

Origin of topknot

First recorded in 1680–90; top ¹ + knot ¹

Example Sentences

Perhaps the most striking is the pied kingfisher, commonly called a helldiver, with its black and white plumage, shaggy topknot and slender beak.

From New York Times • Jun. 6, 2023

Haring limned his oval head, the topknot above a receding hairline, a pair of prominent ears and eyes staring out from behind black-rimmed eyeglasses.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 6, 2023

His topknot had just been cut off as a forfeit for losing out on a challenge to a colleague at the direct sales company for which he worked in 2018.

From BBC • Aug. 22, 2022

Several of Max-Karl Winkler’s subjects are enclosed within circles, and in his “The Checkered Scarf,” a woman’s torso, topknot and titular scarf all protrude from the oblong that contains her head.

From Washington Post • Jul. 7, 2021

His gray-streaked black hair was in a topknot, and he wore a pair of tinted glasses and sported a trim beard.

From "Aru Shah and the End of Time" by Roshani Chokshi