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
-
have been braidingperfect progressive
-
has been braidingperfect progressive
Past
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braidedsimple
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had braidedperfect
-
was braidingprogressive
-
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:
Covered in tattoos, with his hair in a long braid, 35-year-old Australian DJ and former boy-band member Lenny Pearce looks more like an all-night raver than a children’s host.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 2, 2026
What follows the tarp is a lovely narrative braid.
From Salon ● Jun. 30, 2026
The idea is to have expert hairstylists train uninitiated or intimidated fathers on how to comb and braid their kids’ hair, using salon-type head mannequins but in a setting for bros.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 19, 2026
Those are the two pieces that braid together so nicely.
From Slate ● Jan. 10, 2026
The braid wasn’t perfectly neat and straight like the braids Janie did, but it wasn’t bad.
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
Approaching audience members to explore their own feelings about their hair, she receives with surprised saucer eyes encouragement to embrace the braids she has.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026
She also taught the fathers basic hair-care techniques, including shampooing, detangling, checking for lice and how to tie ponytails and braids.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 19, 2026
At the national level, the Safer Beauty Bill Package, introduced in Congress last year, contains provisions that would direct the Food and Drug Administration to regulate the safety of synthetic braids and hair extensions.
From Science Daily ● Feb. 19, 2026
“Let me redo those braids, since we have a bit of time.”
From "Ophie's Ghosts" by Justina Ireland
Nepal's rivers cross a sharp break in slope at the mountain front, drop their sediment, and spread across the plains as braided, shifting channels.
From BBC ● Sep. 3, 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
One theory is that the moniker emerged from a cowpoke misinterpretation of the Spanish word galón, for braided hat-bands.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 23, 2026
He had piercings in his nose and about five on each ear, cool braided hair, and lots of tattoos.
From "Witchlings" by Claribel A. Ortega
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
“I’ll do a long twist of lemon, lime and either orange or grapefruit and braid them together, like you’re braiding hair,” Caporale says.
From Salon ● Jan. 18, 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
The phone rang again and Mariama spoke in French, her voice rising, and she stopped braiding to gesture with her hand as she shouted into the phone.
From "Americanah" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
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.
