bad hair day

American  

noun

1. a disagreeable or unpleasant day, especially one during which one feels unattractive.

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bad hair day British  

noun

1. a day on which one's hair is untidy and unmanageable

2. a day of mishaps and general irritation

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bad hair day Idioms  

1. A day when one's appearance, especially one's hair, does not look attractive. For example, What have I done to upset Martha? Nothing, she's just having a bad hair day. Originating as a humorous statement, this term was soon broadened to mean simply having a bad day, that is, a day when everything seems to go wrong. [Late 1980s] Also see not one's day.

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Etymology

Origin of bad hair day

First recorded in 1990–95

Example Sentences

One reveller had a very creative solution to their bad hair day.

From BBC • Jun. 26, 2017

And in an interview, a “trauma-sensitive yoga” instructor talked through her “hair trauma”: “I grew up with really curly, frizzy hair in Miami, Florida. When you’re 13, a bad hair day is overwhelming,” she said.

From Washington Post • Aug. 12, 2016

We miss the note, we have the bad hair day.

From Salon • Jan. 7, 2015

It makes for a bad hair day, and can also affect beards.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 6, 2014

Now Vital Theater Company is bringing their adventures to the stage in this new musical by Sammy Buck and Daniel S. Acquisto, which centers on a wad of gum and a really bad hair day.

From New York Times • Mar. 8, 2012