haircut

American  

[hair-kuht] / ˈhɛərˌkʌt /

noun

haircuts plural

1. an act or instance of cutting the hair.

2. the style in which the hair is cut and worn, especially men's hair.

---

haircut British  

/ ˈhɛəˌkʌt /

noun

1. the act or an instance of cutting the hair

2. the style in which hair has been cut

3. slang stock exchange a percentage of the value of an asset deducted to account for a possible fall in its value before it can be liquidated

---

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• haircutter
  noun
• haircutting
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• haircuts
  plural

Etymology

Origin of haircut

First recorded in 1895–1900; hair + cut

Explanation

A haircut is what a barber does when he trims your hair with scissors. You might decide it's time for a haircut when your bangs are hanging in your eyes. Some people go to fancy salons for a haircut, while others visit a barber or trust a friend to give them a haircut. You can call the resulting style — the layered sides or shaved neck — a haircut too. If your haircut is striking or unusual, like a spiky purple Mohawk, you'll probably get lots of comments and admiring glances. The haircut is believed to date from A.U.C. 454, in ancient Rome.

Example Sentences

Goosebumps blossomed on my skin as Mexico’s head coach Javier Aguirre, he of a stern face and gray haircut worthy of a drill sergeant, beamed while singing.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 25, 2026

When he was imprisoned in 2020, he was concerned that he might be forced to get a haircut.

From Slate • Jun. 23, 2026

Other inmates would ask the young barber for a haircut before their family members visited, Chapati said.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 22, 2026

Why would you travel 530 miles for a haircut?

From BBC • Jun. 17, 2026

Trying not to think about how weird it is to get a haircut from your teacher in the bathroom at school, I close my eyes.

From "How to Disappear Completely" by Ali Standish

Related Words

• crew cut
• hairdo
• hairstyle