hair

[ hair ]

/ hɛər /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR hair ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

any of the numerous fine, usually cylindrical, keratinous filaments growing from the skin of humans and animals; a pilus.

an aggregate of such filaments, as that covering the human head or forming the coat of most mammals.

a similar fine, filamentous outgrowth from the body of insects, spiders, etc.

Botany. a filamentous outgrowth of the epidermis.

cloth made of hair from animals, as camel and alpaca.

a very small amount, degree, measure, magnitude, etc.; a fraction, as of time or space: He lost the race by a hair.

Nearby words

hainan, hainan strait, hainaut, haines city, haiphong, hair, hair bulb, hair cast, hair cell, hair disk, hair follicle

Idioms

get in someone's hair, Slang. to annoy or bother someone: Their snobbishness gets in my hair.

hair of the dog, Informal. a drink of liquor, supposed to relieve a hangover: Even a hair of the dog didn't help his aching head.Also hair of the dog that bit one.

let one's hair down, Informal.

to relax; behave informally: He finally let his hair down and actually cracked a joke.
to speak candidly or frankly; remove or reduce restraints: He let his hair down and told them about his anxieties.

make one's hair stand on end, to strike or fill with horror; terrify: The tales of the jungle made our hair stand on end.

split hairs, to make unnecessarily fine or petty distinctions: To argue about whether they arrived at two o'clock or at 2:01 is just splitting hairs.

tear one's hair, to manifest extreme anxiety, grief, or anger: He's tearing his hair over the way he was treated by them.Also tear one's hair out.

to a hair, perfect to the smallest detail; exactly: The reproduction matched the original to a hair.

without turning a hair, without showing the least excitement or emotion.Also not turn a hair.

Origin of hair

before 900; Middle English heer, Old English hǣr (cognate with Dutch, German haar, Old Norse hār), with vowel perhaps from Middle English haire hair shirt < Old French < Old High German hāria (cognate with Middle English here, Old English hǣre, Old Norse hǣra)

Related forms

hair·like, adjectivede·hair, verb (used with object)

Can be confused

hair hare

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for hair

But his fingers moved through her silky strands of hair, and then down her neck.
Powerful Congressman Writes About ‘Fleshy Breasts’|Asawin Suebsaeng|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
They dye their hair and alter their clothes, but not enough to attract attention from authorities.
North Korea’s Secret Movie Bootleggers: How Western Films Make It Into the Hermit Kingdom|Lizzie Crocker|December 22, 2014|DAILY BEAST
While the look worked for some, the combination of heat and chemicals took a toll on the hair of others.
Goodbye To A Natural Hair Guru: Miss Jessie's Cofounder Titi Branch Dead At 45|Danielle Belton|December 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The idea to invest in their own hair company came from Miko after seeing how clients at their salon responded to her natural hair.
Goodbye To A Natural Hair Guru: Miss Jessie's Cofounder Titi Branch Dead At 45|Danielle Belton|December 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST

“You can cut my hair, you can bald me, you can strip me naked and take away my dignity,” she said.
A Quorum For Change: The Fight For Global LGBT Equality|Justin Jones|December 11, 2014|DAILY BEAST
A large proportion of mammals have the surface fairly uniformly covered with hair of one kind only.
The Vertebrate Skeleton|Sidney H. Reynolds
I pinned a clean towel round my neck, barber fashion, and pulling the pins out of my hair, shook it down over my shoulders.
The Motor Maid|Alice Muriel Williamson and Charles Norris Williamson
Lady Cecilia rose from the bed, advanced towards the mirror, and smoothed her hair.
The Mysteries of London, v. 1/4|George W. M. Reynolds
Between that and the wildcats it made our hair stand on end and the chills go up and down our spines.
The Biography of a Rabbit|Roy Benson
He could scent the flower-like odour of her body and wrapping, even her hair.
The Harvester|Gene Stratton Porter

British Dictionary definitions for hair

hair

/ (hɛə) /

noun

any of the threadlike pigmented structures that grow from follicles beneath the skin of mammals and consist of layers of dead keratinized cells

a growth of such structures, as on the human head or animal body, which helps prevent heat loss from the body

botany any threadlike outgrowth from the epidermis, such as a root hair

a fabric or material made from the hair of some animals
(as modifier)a hair carpet; a hair shirt

another word for hair's-breadth to lose by a hair

get in someone's hair informal to annoy someone persistently

hair of the dog or hair of the dog that bit one an alcoholic drink taken as an antidote to a hangover

keep your hair on! British informal keep calm

let one's hair down to behave without reserve

not turn a hair to show no surprise, anger, fear, etc

split hairs to make petty and unnecessary distinctions

Derived Forms

hairlike, adjective

Word Origin for hair

Old English hær; related to Old Norse hār, Old High German hār hair, Norwegian herren stiff, hard, Lettish sari bristles, Latin crescere to grow

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Medicine definitions for hair

hair

[ hâr ]

n.

Any of the cylindrical, keratinized, often pigmented filaments characteristically growing from the epidermis of a mammal.

A growth of such filaments, as that forming the coat of an animal or covering the scalp of a human.

One of the fine hairlike processes of a sensory cell.

Science definitions for hair

hair

[ hâr ]

One of the fine strands that grow from the skin of mammals, usually providing insulation against the cold. Modified hairs sometimes serve as protective defenses, as in the quills of a porcupine or hedgehog, or as tactile organs, as in the whiskers (called vibrissae) of many nocturnal mammals. Hair filaments are a modification of the epidermis of the skin and are composed primarily of keratin. Hair also contains melanin, which determines hair color.

A slender growth resembling a mammalian hair, found on insects and other animals.

A fine, threadlike growth from the epidermis of plants. See more at trichome.

Idioms and Phrases with hair

hair

In addition to the idioms beginning with hair

hair of the dog that bit you
hair shirt

also see:

bad hair day
by a hair
by the short hairs
fair-haired boy
get gray hair from
hang by a thread (hair)
hide or hair
in someone's hair
let one's hair down
make one's hair stand on end
put lead in one's pencil (hair on one's chest)
split hairs
tear one's hair
turn a hair