hairball

American  

[hair-bawl] / ˈhɛərˌbɔl /

noun

1. a ball of hair accumulated in the stomach or intestines of a cat or other animal as a result of the animal's licking its coat.

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hairball British  

/ ˈhɛəˌbɔːl /

noun

1. a compact mass of hair that forms in the stomach of cats, calves, etc, as a result of licking and swallowing the fur, and causes vomiting, coughing, bloat, weight loss, and depression

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Etymology

Origin of hairball

First recorded in 1705–15; hair + ball ¹

Example Sentences

I woke up in the middle of the night — in that middle part between sleep and awake — to what sounded like a cat coughing up a hairball.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 15, 2024

The collection includes George Washington’s death announcement, a mummified cat and even a giant hairball.

From Seattle Times • Feb. 15, 2023

Introduced by Sega at the start of the 1990s, the zippy blue hairball Sonic the Hedgehog is now officially over the hill and picking up speed onscreen.

From New York Times • Apr. 7, 2022

But the cough could have been caused by something as simple as a hairball, he said, and the keepers were unsure what it meant.

From Washington Post • Oct. 8, 2021

When I looked at the hairball on the payload, I didn’t see the eighth grade president; I saw the Super Bowl champions.

From "Schooled" by Gordon Korman